 Sun Herald -- ZACHARY, La. -- A Zachary native who joined the Army his senior year in high school was killed Saturday in Iraq when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle, the Army said.
 Spc. William Jared Crouch, 21, had only been stationed in Iraq for a little more than a month, his mother, Kathy Rushing, said in a newspaper interview. She was informed of his death Saturday night by casualty assistance soldiers from Fort Polk.
The Department of Defense said Crouch was a calvary scout assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Lewis, Wash.
Rushing said her younger son, John Crouch, a reservist with a maintenance company stationed in Iraq, would try to join his brother's body on the flight back to the U.S.
"We're hoping he'll be able to bring his brother home," Rushing said.
She said both sons had always felt the need to serve. Jared Crouch, who graduated from Starkey Academy in Central in 2004, wanted to be "in the thick of things... on the front lines," his mother said.
She said he got his desire to serve from his father, James Crouch, a Baton Rouge policeman who died of natural causes when Crouch was 13. James Crouch, had wanted to serve in the military but never got the opportunity, Rushing said. |
I would like to say thank you for your service and sacrifice for our Country. And to your family and loved ones, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy.
"Animo Et Fide"(Courageous And Faithful)
1st Cav Motto