Another Local Hero, KIA :-(

Sadly, another hero not far from us has been killed in action in Iraq. This Hero was not from Loganville; he was from Lilburn which, I believe, is approximately an hour away from us. Still counts as "local" to me, though. If it's driving distance - it's local. I got the DOD press release about this a day or two ago, but didn't write about it at that time ~ was waiting to try to get some more information together before I did so. Today's Gwinnett Daily Post has an article on this Hero, which I'm copying below for you... Just like I did last year when Mike Stokely was killed. Too sad.

Please keep this sweet family in your thoughts and prayers. Once again, it appears I'll have to miss another hero's funeral as I got the impression it would take place during the work week. Once again - I'm very upset about it. But ~ as soon as practicable thereafter... I'll try to make my way to visit his grave one weekend if at all possible... If I can find where it's located, etc. Anyway, below is the news story:

Parents: Lilburn soldier loved family

09/28/2006 By Arielle Kass Staff Writer arielle.kass@gwinnettdailypost.com

LILBURN - Aaron Kincaid had dreams of being Evel Knievel, the motorcycle-riding, high-jumping daredevil.When he was young and lived on a farm in Ohio, Kincaid's father said, he tried to imitate the stuntman and took a flying leap on his motorcycle from a hay wagon that was three feet off the ground. Just like the oft-injured Knievel, Kincaid didn't end the episode unscathed. A gash on his eyebrow became a scar, and Kincaid's father said he always recalled where it came from when he looked at his son.The 25-year-old, who became Kenneth E. Kincaid IV when he was adopted at 4 days old but always went by Aaron, was one of two soldiers killed in Iraq on Saturday. He died when a bomb exploded near the Humvee he was driving. Three other soldiers were also injured. Kincaid's father, Kenneth E. Kincaid III - who goes by Skip - said he was a delightful child who grew up to be a great father to his two daughters."He was always so full of energy and so full of life," the elder Kincaid said. "He's going to be missed so much." Marcia Kincaid, his mother, said everyone loved her son and that he met people wherever he went. She recalled a time when, at 3, he went to play outside and ended up having tea with some neighbors she had never met.When they lived in Illinois, Marcia Kincaid said, she and her son used to take long, 12-mile bike rides in a loop before going to breakfast at Hardee's. At first, regulars used to look at their spandex pants quizzically, but it wasn't long before Kincaid wore them down with his smile.

"He would say, 'How are you this morning?' and 'What's your name?'" she said. "He made friends, he helped people, he helped strangers."Kincaid has two daughters with Rachel, his wife of six years, and both his parents said that one of his great loves was fishing with 5-year-old Kennedy and 3-year-old Abby. Marcia Kincaid said he even bought the girls Barbie fishing poles and always wore an old baseball cap with a fish hook stuck in it. Kincaid lived in Lilburn for 10 years before moving to Hawaii, where he was based. He was a student at Lyman Ward Military Academy, a military boarding school in Alabama, and attended Brookwood High School before he graduated from Loganville's Faith Academy. Kincaid's father said he worked at auto dealers and in construction before deciding that he wanted to use the military to get an education to parlay into a better career so he could provide for his daughters."He's always been a doer," Skip Kincaid said. "Whatever he went after, he did it well."When he was killed in Riyadh, Kincaid had just been in Iraq for a month after joining the Army in October. He was a private first class with the 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade. Marcia Kincaid said her son was excited about going to Iraq before he left, and that his biggest worry was an injury to his finger that he thought might have sidelined him while it healed."You never think it's going to be yours. Never in this world," she said. "We talked before he went and he was excited about going, but concerned because he cut his finger before he left. It was his trigger finger. He was afraid they wouldn't let him go. Can you imagine?" In an e-mail he sent to his father three days before he died, Kincaid wrote that everything was fine, before changing his tone. "Who am I kidding?" his father said Kincaid wrote. "It's terrible over here. I hate seeing guys get killed. I'm one of the lucky ones."

"He would say, 'How are you this morning?' and 'What's your name?'" she said. "He made friends, he helped people, he helped strangers."Kincaid has two daughters with Rachel, his wife of six years, and both his parents said that one of his great loves was fishing with 5-year-old Kennedy and 3-year-old Abby. Marcia Kincaid said he even bought the girls Barbie fishing poles and always wore an old baseball cap with a fish hook stuck in it. Kincaid lived in Lilburn for 10 years before moving to Hawaii, where he was based. He was a student at Lyman Ward Military Academy, a military boarding school in Alabama, and attended Brookwood High School before he graduated from Loganville's Faith Academy.Kincaid's father said he worked at auto dealers and in construction before deciding that he wanted to use the military to get an education to parlay into a better career so he could provide for his daughters. "He's always been a doer," Skip Kincaid said. "Whatever he went after, he did it well."When he was killed in Riyadh, Kincaid had just been in Iraq for a month after joining the Army in October. He was a private first class with the 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade. Marcia Kincaid said her son was excited about going to Iraq before he left, and that his biggest worry was an injury to his finger that he thought might have sidelined him while it healed."You never think it's going to be yours. Never in this world," she said. "We talked before he went and he was excited about going, but concerned because he cut his finger before he left. It was his trigger finger. He was afraid they wouldn't let him go. Can you imagine?" In an e-mail he sent to his father three days before he died, Kincaid wrote that everything was fine, before changing his tone. "Who am I kidding?" his father said Kincaid wrote. "It's terrible over here. I hate seeing guys get killed. I'm one of the lucky ones."

Skip Kincaid said his first reaction to hearing the news was one of disbelief. Marcia Kincaid said she learned when her daughter-in-law called her Saturday, but that the military did not arrive to tell her the news until Monday. Funeral arrangements still have not been made because Kincaid's body has not been returned yet, his parents said. The funeral will be held some time next week at St. Marguerite D'Youville Catholic Church, and Kincaid will be buried at the Georgia National Cemetery with full military honors. Jeff Damron, a school counselor and varsity basketball coach at Lyman Ward, said he had not talked to Kincaid in a decade, but remembered him as a coach's dream. He was always enthusiastic, he said, and loved sports. Marcia Kincaid said he went through phases with every sport - golf, football, baseball - and was a Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates fan. He also loved to go up in his father's plane with his younger brother, Marc, she said. Skip Kincaid said he will remember his son's curly hair, while Marcia Kincaid said she'll recall his blue eyes and the fact that he always wore red."He had the coolest smile in the world," she said. "He was one handsome, loving, giving son who will be forever missed."

- The Associated Press contributed to this story.