KHAS-TV -- A Central Nebraska soldier has died while fighting for his country in Iraq. 26–year–old Sergeant Wayne R. Cornell was killed Monday in Baghdad. The Department of Defense confirms he died when an improvised explosive device went off near his vehicle during combat operations.

He was part of the 28th Infantry Regiment out of Fort Riley, Kansas.

Sgt. Wayne Cornell is from Holstein. Cornell was on his third tour of duty overseas.

He served in the Army National Guard Troop A 167th Cavalry based in Hastings before becoming activity duty military.

As the Silver Lake Guidance Counselor flips though the pages of the 1999 annual, he is searching for pictures of Wayne Cornell, one of Silver Lakes' finest.

"He was a person who gave everything he had in everything he did," said Chris Sluka. "He was well liked by our students and the things that he enjoyed he tried very hard at. He was tremendously well mannered."

And he poured his heart and soul into a number of things. When he was 14, he started taking Taekwondo classes, and he even earned a 3rd degree Black Belt.

"He had intended to come back and start training with us again.

One of our last email's had talked about setting things up with Mr. Kim and being able to test for his next rank and continue training with us. So we were looking forward to him coming," said Michael Neiman of South Central Taekwondo.

While he worked on Taekwondo, one of the main things he wanted to do, since he was a freshman in High School, was join the military. "When he was old enough he talked to all of them because he was very interested in making what for him was the right choice, but he knew that being in the military was going to be his career one way or another," Sluka said.

Though Wayne was extremely successful in a number of areas, his teachers remember him the most for being kind hearted.

"I will remember Wayne as being one of the most caring gentle funny people I have known," said Vicki Neiman of South Central Taekwondo.

Sgt. Wayne Cornell's father and grandfather both served in the military.

Wayne was deployed to Iraq just last month.

He and his wife Tricia have two preschool children and one on the way.