Army Pvt. Kelley S. Prewitt, 24, of Centerpoint, Ala.
Army Pvt. Kelley Prewitt is kissed by his mother, Jean Prewitt, on Jan. 7, 2003, the day he left for Kuwait from Fort Benning. |
In his last letter home, Army Pvt. Kelley Prewitt told his dad he wished he was back in Alabama, and that it wouldn't be long before he'd be calling for a ride home.
"He said he'd be calling me soon from the airport to please pick him up and please bring him his car," Steve Prewitt said Thursday.
Pvt. Prewitt was killed in action in Iraq on April 6, two years after he enlisted and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment at Fort Benning, Ga. He was deployed in January.
Prewitt said his son liked to ride his personal watercraft on Lake Logan Martin, where they owned a mobile home. "He loved the lake and he loved the outdoors," he said.
The Pentagon told Prewitt his son died when his convoy was ambushed.
"I just know that Kelley would really hope -- and I do, too -- that in the future, history will tell us that his death and the death of all these other soldiers is not in vain," Prewitt said.
"The Iraqi people ... will understand that our way of life and law and order and freedom is the way to live on this earth."
God speed, Pvt. Prewitt. May you rest in peace & may your family know you will live in forever in the hearts of free people as a true hero.
Cpl. Kemaphoom A. Chanawongse, 22, of Waterford, CT
Cpl. Jason David Mileo, 20 of Centreville, MD
Air Force:
Capt. Eric B. Das, 30, of Amarillo, TX
Army:
Cpl. John T. Rivero, 23, of Tampa, FL