Army Sgt. Keith was assigned to the 2-325th Infantry, Company D, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina as a gunner. Keith was on mounted night patrol in Baghdad manning a machine gun atop a Humvee when a roadside bomb exploded. He was thrown from the vehicle and suffered a fatal head wound.
Chad's interest in the military began at an early age spurred in part by an uncle and a grandfather who were veterans. He enlisted in the Army before his May 2000 high school graduation. He was really happy to be in the Army; he wanted it to be his career. Chad always said he would become president someday. When he met Bush last year at a rally for troops at Fort Bragg, Keith had the chutzpah to grip the president's hand and say, "I'm going to be you someday, sir." Chad is remembered as a self-directed young man with an artistic side, who filled countless sketchpads with drawings of tiny birds and mountain landscapes, but who was always the first to volunteer for any bit of excitement that might offer itself.
Whenever Keith managed to call or write from Iraq, he never spoke of death or carnage. Instead, he told of an Iraqi child who reminded him of his 3-year-old niece; he befriended the girl and slipped her his MREs (meals ready to eat), and he asked his family to send more portable chocolate puddings and coffee in the care packages. Keith's death came just 26 days before he was to be promoted from specialist to sergeant.
Chad's interest in the military began at an early age spurred in part by an uncle and a grandfather who were veterans. He enlisted in the Army before his May 2000 high school graduation. He was really happy to be in the Army; he wanted it to be his career. Chad always said he would become president someday. When he met Bush last year at a rally for troops at Fort Bragg, Keith had the chutzpah to grip the president's hand and say, "I'm going to be you someday, sir." Chad is remembered as a self-directed young man with an artistic side, who filled countless sketchpads with drawings of tiny birds and mountain landscapes, but who was always the first to volunteer for any bit of excitement that might offer itself.
Whenever Keith managed to call or write from Iraq, he never spoke of death or carnage. Instead, he told of an Iraqi child who reminded him of his 3-year-old niece; he befriended the girl and slipped her his MREs (meals ready to eat), and he asked his family to send more portable chocolate puddings and coffee in the care packages. Keith's death came just 26 days before he was to be promoted from specialist to sergeant.
Army Sgt. Keith was assigned to the 2-325th Infantry, Company D, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina as a gunner. Keith was on mounted night patrol in Baghdad manning a machine gun atop a Humvee when a roadside bomb exploded. He was thrown from the vehicle and suffered a fatal head wound.
Chad's interest in the military began at an early age spurred in part by an uncle and a grandfather who were veterans. He enlisted in the Army before his May 2000 high school graduation. He was really happy to be in the Army; he wanted it to be his career. Chad always said he would become president someday. When he met Bush last year at a rally for troops at Fort Bragg, Keith had the chutzpah to grip the president's hand and say, "I'm going to be you someday, sir." Chad is remembered as a self-directed young man with an artistic side, who filled countless sketchpads with drawings of tiny birds and mountain landscapes, but who was always the first to volunteer for any bit of excitement that might offer itself.
Whenever Keith managed to call or write from Iraq, he never spoke of death or carnage. Instead, he told of an Iraqi child who reminded him of his 3-year-old niece; he befriended the girl and slipped her his MREs (meals ready to eat), and he asked his family to send more portable chocolate puddings and coffee in the care packages. Keith's death came just 26 days before he was to be promoted from specialist to sergeant.
Chad's interest in the military began at an early age spurred in part by an uncle and a grandfather who were veterans. He enlisted in the Army before his May 2000 high school graduation. He was really happy to be in the Army; he wanted it to be his career. Chad always said he would become president someday. When he met Bush last year at a rally for troops at Fort Bragg, Keith had the chutzpah to grip the president's hand and say, "I'm going to be you someday, sir." Chad is remembered as a self-directed young man with an artistic side, who filled countless sketchpads with drawings of tiny birds and mountain landscapes, but who was always the first to volunteer for any bit of excitement that might offer itself.
Whenever Keith managed to call or write from Iraq, he never spoke of death or carnage. Instead, he told of an Iraqi child who reminded him of his 3-year-old niece; he befriended the girl and slipped her his MREs (meals ready to eat), and he asked his family to send more portable chocolate puddings and coffee in the care packages. Keith's death came just 26 days before he was to be promoted from specialist to sergeant.
Gravesite Details
s/o Kim Waid Hitzges.
