The Oregonian -- It was fall 2005, and Daniel Leckel had just told his parents he was dropping out of college to join the Army.

They knew his motives were right -- he wanted to serve his country and make money to help pay for his education -- but they couldn't stomach the thought of him going to war.

"We tried to discourage him," said his stepfather, Richard LeCrone, a disabled Vietnam veteran who lives in Grants Pass. "I've been there, and done that, and I didn't want him to go."

At 9 p.m. Wednesday, when LeCrone and Leckel's mother, Cathy LeCrone, heard knocks on the door, their stomachs sank. An Army chaplain stood on the stoop. "We opened the door and saw him, and we knew," said Cathy LeCrone. "We just knew."

The chaplain told them Leckel, 19, had been killed in small-arms fire in southern Baghdad. Based out of Fort Riley, Kan., Leckel is the 109th service member from Oregon or southwest Washington to die in conflicts since Sept. 11, 2001. Born in Portland, he moved to Glendale in middle school and graduated from Glendale High in 2005.

Leckel was beloved, and news of his death has sped across the small town of Glendale. "He was a popular kid," remembered Steven Prock, the head of the high school's athletic department. "He didn't have a mean bone in his body."

Leckel was close to Prock, who coached the school's football and baseball teams. "He just loved sports, but he didn't have a lick of talent," Prock said. But instead of giving up, Leckel volunteered to help manage the teams. "He acted more like a coach than a player," Prock said. "I would always joke that Daniel Leckel was the only one we couldn't replace."

Prock said Leckel had an easy way about him, and that he never complained. "I took him home every night after practice," Prock said. "I looked forward to ending my day with him because he had a pretty good outlook."

After Leckel graduated, he spent a semester at Rogue Community College. He hoped to become a sports writer, and had once shadowed a local sports reporter. But in late 2005 he put those dreams on hold.

Prock remembers when Leckel returned to Glendale after months of basic training. "He came down to the baseball diamond in his uniform and strutted around a bit," he said, laughing. "He was proud."

In January 2007, Leckel was sent to Iraq. He wrote his parents detailed accounts of his life there, describing the dangers of Baghdad but also the fun experiences. "One Iraqi family invited him to dinner, and he wrote us everything he ate," his stepfather said. "They had rice and lamb stew and pita bread; he seemed to like it."

Leckel had a particular affection for Iraqi kids. His MySpace profile has a photo of children waving. And recently he asked his parents to send him candy to hand out to Iraqi kids. The LeCrones shipped 6 pounds of sweets to Baghdad.

Richard LeCrone said Leckel told his family that he loved the brotherhood of his unit. "He always liked being part of a team," LeCrone said. "And those squads are teams."

The LeCrones are trying to heal, but they're plagued by near-constant regret. Richard LeCrone remembers one of Leckel's dreams that now will never be realized. "He loved the Atlanta Braves and he always wanted to get back there to see one of their games," LeCrone said, his voice trailing off.

"He was a great kid," he said. "He deserved better than this."