Nicholas J. Greer
Private First Class, United States Army
October 28, 1983 – October 7, 2005
Age – 21
Monroe, MI
Operation Iraqi Freedom
3rd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, NC
Died of injuries sustained when his dismounted patrol was attacked by enemy forces in Haqlaniyah, Iraq with small arms fire
Army Pfc. Nicholas J. Greer was only 2 years old when he decided he was going to be a paratrooper. The youngster made the decision after taking a ride in a helicopter during an air show. “He said, ‘Momma, I’m going to jump out of these one day. I’m going to be a soldier,” his mother, Kelly Greer, told The Detroit News for a Tuesday story. “He said, ‘Mom, I want to fight terrorism. I begged him not to go. I didn’t want him to go during war. But he wanted to go after 9-11.”
Greer died Friday of injuries received in western Iraq, the Defense Department said Monday. The 21-year-old soldier died of a gunshot wound suffered when insurgents attacked his patrol unit in Haqlaniyah, Iraq. He was part of an operation working to stop the infiltration of insurgents from Syria.
Greer, who was born and raised in Monroe, had been in Iraq only about two weeks. He had attended Monroe High School and earned his general educational diploma. He played paintball and had been the drummer in a heavy metal garage band. After high school, he worked for a local greenhouse and often sold flowers at Eastern Market in Detroit. He had planned to attend college and pursue a career in computers.
Greer enlisted in September 2004 and was stationed in Afghanistan before going to Iraq, where he served as a sniper marksman and helicopter search and rescue specialist.
