Soldier killed was headed home for birth of first child

Hector Gutierrez, Rocky Mountain News

Published May 22, 2007 at midnight

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Sgt. Ryan J. Baum was just a day away from a two-week leave so he could witness the birth of his first child -- a daughter.

But the 27-year-old Smoky Hill High School grad was killed Friday after his unit was attacked in Karmah, Iraq.

Baum was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.

His family said Baum never wanted to be a hero and wanted to be remembered as someone just doing his job.

"He was simply determined to help by working as a medic. The family is remembering who he was as a person," his mother, Dana Baum, told 9News.

Baum was the second soldier with Colorado ties who died in Iraq last Friday, the Defense Department said.

Sgt. 1st Class Scott J. Brown was killed after he was hit with small-arms fire.

Brown grew up in Brookfield, Wis., and was a huge Packers fan, his family said. He graduated from Brookfield Central High School, but moved to Fort Collins, where he lived with his sister for about a year and a half.

Brown reached out to children during the war in Iraq, and was good at it, his family said Monday. By nature he loved children. Brown had a son, two daughters, and nephews and nieces who adored him, his family said.

Brown took it upon himself to create his own outreach project, with family members sending him stuffed animals, toys and games that he could hand out to Iraqi youngsters who

In addition to Operation Iraqi Freedom, Brown toured other world hot spots, including Afghanistan, Kuwait and Kosovo.

When he married his wife, Delilah, nearly two years ago, Brown was deployed again to serve in Afghanistan and then two more tours in Iraq. He saw his wife for only about four months during the couple's nearly two years of marriage.

"You could see by his rank that he was an awesome soldier for only being in the Army for nine years," his family said in a statement.

His sister remembered that while growing up, he sometimes talked about following in the footsteps of his late father, Vernon Brown, who served in the Korean War. At 24, Scott Brown enlisted.

He was assigned to Fort Benning, Ga., later moved to Fort Hood, Texas, then deployed to Kosovo and Kuwait.

He eventually made it into airborne and was assigned with the 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division in Fort Bragg, N.C.

Funeral services for Brown are expected to be held in Milwaukee.

In addition to his sister, Brown is survived by his wife, Delilah, son, Taylor (TJ), and stepdaughters, Vicki and Cassie; his mother, Lynne, stepfather, Lory Ferguson; and his brother, Michael.

"Scott would do anything for anybody, especially when it had to do with kids," his family's statement read. "His heart was as big as his dedication to his country. He never let us worry about him and always assured us that he would be fine."

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