Kiel community honors fallen soldier

KIEL (AP) - It was a star-spangled walk nobody at Kiel High School wanted to be making.

"A hard thing to comprehend and still right now too," said Wendy Schmitt of Kiel.

The reality, that Staff Sergeant Amy Kreueger has come back home for the last time, as friends, family, fellow soldiers and the Kiel community paid their respects at her visitation Friday.

Krueger, 29, was killed in the shooting at Fort Hood last week. She was a mental health specialist who signed up for the military after the terrorist attacks of 2001.

"Its hard because it hits home, said Dan Krueger, Amy's uncle. "Prior to this all the things you do to get ready for this, it doesn't sink in."

For every hug, for every tear were seemingly a dozen stories. Stories about a childhood tenacity that never faded.

"She was very upset and she made this known very often that she could not wear He-Man underwear like the boys," said Dan Krueger.

Stories about her zeal for life.

"Full of life, loved life," said Brenda Freis, a family friend of the Krueger's. "Somebody that full of life should not be killed in their own country."

Sotries about her calming presence in times of adversity.

"When we were in Afghanistan together we had a particularly horrific night. In that night we lost 8 American soldiers," said Maj. Gen. Richard Stone, who was Krueger's forst commander in the army. "I will tell you in my career it was one of the toughest nights of my life. It was Amy who came to me and put her hand on my shoulder and said, 'sir it's going to be ok. We're going to get through this and we're going to go forward.'"

Go forward she did, and go forward, those she left behind will have to. In honor of the daughter, the soldier and the friend with a knack for bringing people together even in her absence.

"The outpouring of love and support is crazy," said Dan Krueger.

Gov. Jim Doyle has ordered flags at Wisconsin National Guard armories, air bases and other facilities across the state to be flown at half-staff Saturday, November 14th in Krueger's honor.