Paul J. Finken killed by roadside bomb

An Iowa native who was scheduled to return home next week from a tour of combat duty in Iraq has been killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad, the U.S. Department of Defense said today.

U.S. Army Lt. Col. Paul J. Finken, 40, who was raised in Earling, a western-Iowa town of 470 people, died along with two other soldiers on Thursday when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle, military officials said.

Finken, who graduated from Harlan High School, attended Iowa State University for one year before transferring to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., where he graduated in 1989.

He had been a career Army officer, serving with the 101st Airborne Division in Iraq.

He leaves behind a wife, Jackie, and three daughters, Emilie, 8; Caroline, 6, and Julia, 4, all of Clarksville, Tenn. The 101st Airborne Division is headquarter nearby at Fort Campbell, Ky.

Finken was remembered today as a warm, bright person who dedicated to his country and often smiled.

"He was always doing everything for everybody. He always had a joke and he made everybody laugh and feel comfortable," said Sharon Finken of Harlan, who was Paul Finken's sister-in-law.

Finken was just finishing his tour of Iraq and was showing ropes to an officer who was to replace him when he was killed by the roadside bomb, Sharon Finken said.

He was scheduled to return to Fort Campbell sometime between Nov. 15 and Nov. 17, she said.

The Army identified the other deceased soldiers as Lt. Col. Eric J. Kruger, 40, of Garland, Texas, and Staff Sgt. Joseph A. Gage, 28, of Modesto, Calif.

Finken's family issued a statement of thanks to friends and fellow soldiers for an outpouring of love and support they have received in their time of grief.

"Paul was a devoted husband, loving father and respected leader. He loved being a soldier and respected the soldiers he worked with," the family said. "He always set the example and would never ask his soldiers to do anything he wouldn't do himself. He will be greatly missed by his family and by all who knew him."

Finken is the 46th person with ties to Iowa who has died in Iraq or Afghanistan since March 2003.

Funeral arrangements are pending with Pauley-Jones Funeral Home in Harlan.

The funeral will be held at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Earling. Burial will be in the local cemetery, family members said.

A Paul Finken Memorial Trust Fund has been established. Donations can be sent to: Farmers Trust & Savings Bank, C/O Paul Finken Memorial, P.O. Box 285, Earling, IA, 51530.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Charles and Edna Finken, and by his brother, John.

Survivors include six brothers, Steve of Harlan; Alan of Littleton, Colo; Richard of Earling; Dave of Papillon, Neb.; Mark of Carroll; and Peter of Simsbury, Conn.; and two sisters, Jean Pruitt of Spencer, and Joan Henscheid of West Des Moines.

From the Des Moines Register