Name: Army Staff Sgt. Ergin V Osman
Age: 35 From: Jacksonville, NC Assigned to the 4th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment, 159th Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky. Incident: Army Staff Sgt. Ergin V Osman
died May 26 of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device in Kandahar province, Afghanistan. Also killed were 1st Lt. John M. Runkle, Staff Sgt. Edward D. Mills Jr., Sgt. Thomas A. Bohall, Spc. Adam J. Patton and Sgt. Louie A. Ramos Velazquez.
Sgt. raised in metro Detroit dies in Afghanistan
The Associated Press
HARRISON TOWNSHIP, Mich. &mdash A 35-year-old soldier who grew up in Detroit's northern suburbs and who was on his second tour of duty in Afghanistan was killed in an insurgent attack that also claimed the lives of five of his comrades from Fort Campbell, Ky.
Staff Sgt. Ergin V. Osman was one of six soldiers from the Army's 101st Airborne Ranger Pathfinders based at Fort Campbell who died when an improvised explosive device hit their unit May 26 in Kandahar province, the Pentagon announced.
Also killed in the attack were 1st Lt. John M. Runkle, 27, of West Salem, Ohio Staff Sgt. Edward D. Mills Jr., 29, of New Castle, Pa. Sgt. Thomas A. Bohall, 25, of Bel Aire, Kan. Spc. Adam J. Patton, 21, of Port Orchard, Wash. and Sgt. Louie A. Ramos Velazquez, 39, of Camuy, Puerto Rico.
Osman grew up in Macomb County's Harrison Township, then moved to Sterling Heights at age 16, The Macomb Daily of Mount Clemens reported. His former wife, Mouna Osman, and their sons &mdash Aidan, 9, and Zeren, 5 &mdash live in St. Clair Shores.
Osman joined the Marines, then switched to the Army in 2007.
"He died doing what he loved to do," Mouna Osman said. "He loved the military and everything it stood for."
Aidan Osman remembered good times with his father and told WDIV he wants to follow in his footsteps.
"We went down to Fort Campbell and shot targets with a BB gun," Aidan said.
Aidan and Zeren displayed U.S. flags on the front lawn of their family's home along with a poster that has the message "Miss You Daddy" with a hand-drawn image of their father.
"My youngest, Zeren, was upset," their mother said. "He said, 'My dad isn't going to see my ball games or see my kindergarten graduation,' but I told him, 'Now your dad can see everything you do all the time.'"
Osman also is survived by his wife, Pfc. Kristin Osman of Hopkinsville, Ky. His mother, Sarah Osman, lives in Harrison Township.
&lsquoThat&rsquos what he was born and bred to do&rsquo
By Tammy Stables Battaglia
Detroit Free Press
Family and friends of Staff Sgt. Ergin V. Osman say the soldier who grew up in Detroit&rsquos suburbs was &ldquoborn and bred&rdquo for the service.
Osman, 35, of Jacksonville, N.C., was one of six soldiers killed May 26 after Afghan insurgents attacked their unit with an improvised explosive device in Kandahar province. They were assigned to the 4th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment, 159th Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), based at Ft. Campbell, Ky., according to the Defense Department.
&ldquoThat&rsquos what he was born and bred to do &mdash he was very proud of it,&rdquo said family friend Geri Witt, 67, of Macomb Township. She said she last saw Osman during the Christmas holidays when he visited his mother, Sarah Osman, at her home in Harrison Township, with his wife, Pfc. Kristin Osman.
His father was a Green Beret during the Vietnam War, Witt said.
&ldquoI think he somewhat followed in his father&rsquos footsteps,&rdquo she said. &ldquoHe was a very wonderful young man.&rdquo
Osman&rsquos two sons, Aidan, 9, and Zeren, 5, live in St. Clair Shores with his former wife, Mouna Osman. Two soldiers came to their door bringing the news, she said.
&ldquoThey explained that their daddy was a hero and he was fighting the war for everybody,&rdquo Mouna Osman said. &ldquoIt was nice.&rdquo
Born Aug. 2, 1975, Osman grew up in Sterling Heights and Harrison Township, and attended Sterling Heights High School. He joined the Marine Corps in 1997, and served for 10 years before enlisting in the Army, his mother said.
Flags lowered in memory of fallen staff sgt.
The Associated Press
LANSING, Mich. &mdash Gov. Rick Snyder ordered U.S. flags throughout Michigan to be lowered to half-staff on June 6 in honor of a soldier who died in Afghanistan.
Army Staff Sgt. Ergin V. Osman, 35, who grew up in Harrison Township and Sterling Heights in Macomb County, was killed along with five other soldiers by an improvised explosive device May 26.
He was a member of the Army&rsquos 101st Airborne Ranger Pathfinders based at Fort Campbell, Ky.
Died: May 26, 2011