Christopher J. Schornak

Thursday, March 02 2006 @ 06:17 AM EST

www.al.com -- A soldier who had lived in Hoover before returning to the Army was killed in Iraq last weekend, the Department of Defense announced Wednesday.

Staff Sgt. Christopher J. Schornak, 28, died Sunday in Baghdad when his squad came under small-arms fire while on patrol, officials said. He was on his second tour of duty in Iraq.

Schornak's wife, Robyn, said her husband was born to be a soldier. "That's what he was called to do," the 24-year-old widow told the Tennessean newspaper in a story Wednesday.

She said her husband was scheduled to return home later this month for rest and to celebrate the third birthday of their son, Tristan.

Schornak, a Marietta, Ga., native, returned to the Army earlier this year and was assigned to the 4th Infantry Division, stationed at Fort Hood, Texas.

pting for reserve status, and worked for a heavy equipment firm in Birmingham.

However, Robyn Schornak said her husband hated life outside the Army and returned to active duty. "He was miserable and that made me miserable and that made everybody else miserable," she said. "We discussed it and he said he wanted to go back. I never tried to talk him out of it."

Schornak said her husband and his patrol were investigating two suspicious vehicles when he waved off other members with a flashlight. Soldiers on the patrol told Robyn her husband was hit in the chest, near the shoulder, by a slanting shot.

"They said Chris was a real hero," she said. "They said he died right there."

Family members said Schornak was born and reared in Marietta and had lived in Hoover about six months. Schornak's parents, James and Lesley, are residents of Ashville.

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