Our Latest American Hero #63

brianallgood, originally uploaded by Randuwa.

Here are five more American Heroes. A little bit about their lives, relationships, accomplishments and dreams. Heroes #'s 59 to 63 have a tall bill to fill. They represent the now more than 30 Americans who were killed over the weekend while prosecuting our "War on Terrorism". In just five stories, you will see how those who represent us, and give the ultimate sacrifice for us, deserve to be called our best and brightest citizens.

Feel free to weep with me.


“He Was Very Brilliant”

A Colorado Springs native serving as the top American medical officer in Iraq died in a Sunday helicopter crash in Baghdad, the Pentagon announced today.

Col. Brian D. Allgood, 46 and a 1978 graduate of Air Academy High School, was a doctor in the Army before becoming the command surgeon of Multi-National Forces Iraq, the American military command in Baghdad, his mother Cleo Allgood of Colorado Springs said.

He was one of 12 soldiers killed when a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crashed at 3 p.m. Sunday in northeast Baghdad. The crash remains under investigation, but Iraq security forces leaders have said it was likely shot down by insurgents.

The son of an Army doctor and Vietnam veteran, retired Col. Gerald Allgood, Brian Allgood decided in his junior year at Air Academy to follow the family tradition. He won an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point and excelled academically, earning a slot in the University of Oklahoma medical school.

“He was very brilliant,” Cleo Allgood said.

But Allgood wanted to be more than just a doctor. He was a top-notch soldier who served as a battalion surgeon in the 75th Ranger Regiment and parachuted into Panama in the 1989 Operation Just Cause.

His mother said the stint with the Rangers, some of the nation’s toughest airborne troops, fit right in with Allgood’s competitive streak.

The hard-charging Allgood tempered his personality with a quick wit and an easy smile, she said.

“He had a very good, dry sense of humor,” his mother said.

He rose through the military ranks, becoming a full colonel in 2002 and serving in top medical posts in Korea and Germany before he was ordered to Iraq.

“He was looking forward to doing the job and from what we hear he was doing a great job,” Cleo Allgood said.

Brian Allgood was married to another West Point graduate, Jane Allgood, who is living in Germany with their son, 11-year-old Wyatt.

“Brian was a wonderful human being,” his mother said. “He was a wonderful brother, son, husband and father. He just was a giving person who served his country.”

The family plans a memorial service at Fort Carson. The date of that service is pending.

The crash killed seven other passengers and four crew members. All were identified Wednesday by the Pentagon.

Also killed were: Staff Sgt. Darryl D. Booker, 37, of Midlothian, Va.; Sgt. 1st Class John G. Brown, 43, of Little Rock, Ark.; Lt. Col. David C. Canegata, 50, of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands; Command Sgt. Maj. Marilyn L. Gabbard, 46, of Polk City, Iowa; Command Sgt. Maj. Roger W. Haller, 49, of Davidsonville, Md.; Col. Paul M. Kelly, 45, of Stafford, Va.; Staff Sgt. Floyd E. Lake, 43, of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; Cpl. Victor M. Langarica, 29, of Decatur, Ga.; Capt. Sean E. Lyerly, 31, of Pflugerville, Texas; Maj. Michael V. Taylor, 40, of North Little Rock, Ark. and 1st Sgt. William T. Warren, 48, of North Little Rock, Ark.