Nathan Frigo remembered

Kokomo, Ind. — Pfc. Nathan Joseph Frigo died doing what he wanted to do: serving in Iraq as a member of the U.S. Army.

The 23-year-old was one of three Fort Carson, Colo.-based soldiers killed when a bomb exploded near their vehicle in Baqubah, a city northeast of Baghdad. The men were among nine soldiers and one Marine killed by roadside bombs and enemy fire last week, during the deadliest month of the war so far for U.S. military.

The 2001 Northwestern High School graduate trained his entire life to be in the military, his family said.

“He wanted to join the military as a child,” his sister Sarah said. “We tried to dissuade him, but he wouldn’t turn from this. When we asked him why he wanted to do it, he said he wanted to make a difference with his life. He wanted to do something that mattered."

“He went into the infantry because he wanted to fill the area of greatest need. Army infantry is a very small area of our military,” she said.

Sitting in her family's living room with her mother, Maureen Frigo, and father Fred Frigo, of Indianapolis, and sister Beth, Sarah remembered how her only brother wanted to go to Iraq and serve on the frontline. Even when he came home on leave for two weeks at the end of July, his mind was still on those with whom he served.

“He couldn’t stop thinking of how much his troops there needed him,” she said.

“Our uncle said he was the type of man you would want to go into battle with because you knew you could depend on him.”

The family felt fortunate to have spent his last leave with him at home. "It was a little bit of heaven for him. He got to do everything he wanted on that leave. God gave him everything he wanted while he was home," Sarah said

Frigo proclaimed himself a “simple kinda guy” on his MySpace page, an Internet networking site, which he logged into the day before he was killed.

One of Frigo’s high school friends and classmates paints a picture of a quiet young man.

“He was really quiet until you go to know him,” Erica Knight said. “He was an all-around really nice guy.”

She said he was proud of being in the military.

“Once he kind of decided that this was the route he was going to take, he was so dedicated to it,” Knight said. “It was like ‘This is what I believe in and I want to help in any way I can.’”

For the last three or four months, Knight and Frigo spoke every few weeks on MySpace.

They talked about Iraq. They talked about high school. But mostly, they talked about his hometown, she said.

“He talked a little bit about — I can’t say ‘enjoying’ what he was doing — but it was a good experience,” she said.

Frigo reported for active duty April 2005, and completed his training at Fort Benning, Ga. At that time, he chose the position of infantryman as his military occupation. He had volunteered to serve a four-year tour of duty.

He died last Tuesday along with fellow Fort Carson soldiers, Staff Sgt. Ryan E. Haupt, 24, of Phoenix, and Sgt. Norman R. Taylor III, 21, of Blythe, Calif. The men were assigned to 1st Battalion, 68th Armor Regiment in the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, which is part of 4th Infantry Division

Frigo is the seventh Kokomo-area man and 68th person from Indiana to have died in the Iraqi war since 2003.

The family has been notified that he will be elevated to specialist and awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

“The government has been more than generous helping military families get through these crises,” his sister said. “We are thankful for the United States.”

While many disagree with America being involved militarily in Iraq, Sarah said her brother believed U.S. involvement was not only right, but necessary.

“Nate would want people to support the troops there and their families. He believed in what he did over there and that we needed to be there,” she explained, “otherwise it would be on our own shores."

“He really made us proud.”

From the Kokomo Tribune

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