Gregory W.G. McCoy
Staff Sergeant, United States Army
February 9, 1980 – November 9, 2006
Age – 26
Webberville, MI
Operation Iraqi Freedom
410th Military Police Company, 720th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade, Fort Hood, TX
Killed when his vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device in Baghdad, Iraq.
Greg joined the Army straight out of school and was on his second tour of duty in Iraq. One of his high school teachers said a life in the military was the only thing he ever wanted. He enlisted in high school and started wearing his fatigues and combat boots to class. He was so proud of it, and he was so happy to have the opportunity to serve. Carol Johnson was proud of her son’s choice in joining the service and saw him the last time for Mother’s Day, just weeks before he was deployed. She said her son enjoyed snowboarding and had a dry sense of humor. On McCoy’s first tour of duty, helped train Iraqi soldiers. He felt they were doing a lot of good there.
He attended basic training at Fort Jackson, Mississippi and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, where he trained to be a Bradley Fighting Vehicle Mechanic.
His first duty station was Fort Hood, Texas, where he was assigned to the 2-20th Field Artillery, 4th Infantry Division. After re-enlisting in the Army in the spring of 2002, Greg attended Military Police school in Fort Leonardwood, Missouri. His next duty station moved his young family to Kaiserslautern, Germany, where he was assigned to the 230th Military Police Company, 95th Military Police Battalion, 37th Transportation Command, 21st Theatre Support Command.
The 230th Military Police Company deployed in March of 2004 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
While downrange, Greg re-enlisted again for service in the Army. Upon his safe return to Germany, he and his family reported back to Fort Hood, where he was assigned to the 410th Military Police Company, 720th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade. It was with this unit, in June 2006, that Greg returned to Iraq for his second deployment.
Greg and a fellow soldier were killed when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle in Baghdad.