ST. CLAIR COUNTY — A former St. Clair County High School student, Spec. Brian "Alex" Vaughn, was on his last mission in Iraq when he was killed by insurgents during a small arms attack.Patrick Savage of Irondale, Vaughn’s stepfather, said the family was told it was the last mission for his stepson’s unit before they were scheduled to depart Iraq for the States.
A U.S. Department of Defense Web site press release said Vaughn, 23, and another soldier from the 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo., were killed June 21 in Ramadi, Iraq.
The press release stated that his unit was conducting combat operations and was attacked by enemy forces using small arms fire. Spec. Christopher L. Hoskins, 21, of Danielson, Conn., was also killed in firefight.
Savage said Vaughn served as an Army medic.
"He patched up more insurgents than soldiers," Savage said. "That’s the way he was — he helped everybody. That’s the way he was all his life. He was a selfless person. It’s overwhelming to me of all the people he touched."
Vaughn graduated from St. Clair County High School in 2000, said Raechel Rybka of Odenville, Vaughn’s former classmate and good friend.
"He was funny, crazy, loud and off the wall," Rybka said. "He always made people laugh. He was never in a bad mood, and he never got upset."
Rybka said she saw Vaughn right before he left for Iraq last summer.
"He was happy and ready to go," she said. "He was just a really, really, really great guy. He went to church every Sunday. Everything he did was so perfect. He was just a great guy."
Vaughn lived in Ashville while attending St. Clair County High School. He lived in Pell City briefly before joining the U.S. Army.
Vaughn’s body could arrive in Birmingham as early as Tuesday, a family member said.
"We’re waiting to get confirmation," Savage said. "We don’t have everything set up yet."
Savage said Vaughn was stationed in Korea before he was deployed to Iraq. Vaughn was allowed two weeks of leave to visit his family before leaving for Iraq last August.
