Army Spc. Thomas A. Moffitt

Remember Our Heroes

Army Spc. Thomas A. Moffitt, 21, of Wichita, Kan.

Spc. Moffitt was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.; died Oct. 24, 2010 in Sarobi district, Paktika province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when his unit was attacked by insurgents with small-arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades.

Family and friends say he died doing what he loved. Army Specialist Tom Moffitt died this weekend while serving in Afghanistan.

A day later, he's being remembered as a man who was a friend to everyone.

His friends say all they have to do is think about the 21 year-old and they smile.

"He left his mark on everyone. If you didn't know him you would want to be his best friend when you were done meeting him," said Devan Krausch.

Best friends since high school Krausch and Nick Johnson say they they worried everyday about getting the phone call they received on Sunday.

Johnson tells Eyewitness News, "A friend, who was with his brother actually called me, and then I had to call all my friends and that was extremely hard to do because I had to say the same thing over and over. I've never felt the way I do right now."

The two men, along with a group of Moffitt's friends all ended up at Moffitt's parents home Sunday night, at no surprise to his family.

"He was always in the middle of things. A lot of people said he was the life of the party. He was full of life, had friends wherever he was," said George Diepenbrock, Moffitt's cousin.

And his family says it's that support that's helping them cope. Support for their loss, and for what Specialist Tom Moffitt did.

Diepenbrock says, "He was good at what he was doing and he knew he was serving his country well and we're all very proud of him."

Johnson adds, "He did what most people wouldn't do, that's the main thing, he died a hero."

Moffitt enlisted in the Army soon after graduating from high school, a family spokesman said. Before being assigned to Afghanistan last summer, he had served with the U.S. Army in South Korea. He was scheduled to come home on leave next month.

Army Spc. Thomas A. Moffitt was killed in action on 10/24/10.