Army Pfc. Tina M. Priest

Remember Our Heroes

Army Pfc. Tina M. Priest, 20, of Austin, Texas

Pfc Priest was assigned to the 4th Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Divison, Fort Hood, Texas; died March 1 from a non-combat-related injury in Taji, Iraq.

By Marty Toohey

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF


Friday, March 10, 2006

SMITHVILLE — Tina Priest, a U.S. Army soldier who served in Iraq, was born prematurely at 1 pound, 10 1/2 ounces. Doctors gave her a 1-in-10 chance of living.

"She was so small, you could hold her in your hand," her father, Tim Priest, said. "But she lived through that, and she really lived. Tina always lived life, to its fullest."

On Thursday, friends and family gathered at Smithville's First Baptist Church to celebrate Pfc. Tina Priest's life and mourn her death. She died in Iraq on March 1 of what the Army says was a gunshot wound to the chest in a noncombat situation. She was 20.

"It's hard to think of being in Iraq and not being in a combat situation," said Beverly Priest, Tina's grandmother.

More than 500 people — in a town of about 4,000 — heard Tina Priest eulogized as a lively spirit who grew up among them, who overcame obstacles throughout her life and who did so with a sharp sense of humor.

Her recruiter, Sgt. Corey Corwin, recalled receiving e-mails from her, some of which he told her the Department of Defense would not appreciate being transmitted via its computers.

"What are they going to do — send me back to Texas?" Corwin remembers her responding. "I'm already in Iraq."

Priest joined the Army after earning certification as a medical assistant and facing a tight local job market, her father said.

In the Army, she dealt with logistics, getting things where they need to be, and handled a machine gun mounted on a Humvee while deployed. A week after she arrived in Iraq, she was injured by shrapnel but returned to duty quickly.

"She was the last one I expected to join the armed services," Tim Priest said. "But she really believed in what she was doing."

In his room, Tim Priest has her military honors displayed: the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, a Military Merit Medal. Priest said he's been told two Purple Hearts are awaiting the approval of the secretary of defense.

The circumstances of Tina Priest's death remain a mystery. Her family says that the manner of death has raised their suspicions but that they understand they may have to wait for an investigation to conclude to get answers.

Army Pfc. Tina M. Priest died of non-combat injuries on 03/01/06.