BRYAN CHRISTIAN LUCKEY

Army Sergeant Bryan Luckey was recognized at Veteran of the Day on VA's Vantage Point blog on May 20, 2023. Army Sgt. Bryan Luckey was born on August 27, 1980, in Tampa, Florida. He was assigned to the 562nd Engineer Company, 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Fort Wainwright, Alaska according to militarytimes.com. Luckey was shot and killed on June 29, 2006, by an enemy sniper while on a mounted patrol in Mosul, Iraq. He was 25 years old. His military awards include the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, Army Commendation Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Medal, Iraqi Service Medal, Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, and the Combat Action Ribbon. Luckey was a graduate of the U.S. Army Airborne School, Sapper Leader Course, and he was a level three qualified Army combative instructor. When he was killed in June 2006, Luckey was the third soldier to die from the Tampa area in less than a week, reported the Tampa Bay Times in a July 2006 article. The others were Army Staff Sgt. Joseph Fuerst III, 26 and Army Cpl. Aaron Griner. Luckey came from a military family. His father, Patrick, served in the Army and his brother, Matthew, in the Marines. “He was just a courageous young man. Totally selfless,” said his father to Tampa’s WLBT.com. “He thought of everyone else first.” Sgt. Bryan Luckey was laid to rest at Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida. To post a tribute or leave a comment in honor of Sgt. Bryan Luckey, please visit his Veterans Legacy Memorial page at https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/BRYANCHRISTIANLUCKEY/A2FA8FD. Carry The Load Memorial May National Relay For the sixth consecutive year, VA joins forces with volunteers to march in honor of Veterans and service members during the Memorial May National Relay starting on April 27. The annual collaboration with VA’s National Cemetery Administration includes rallies at 38 national cemeteries during a 20,000-mile march along five separate routes covering 48 states. All five routes converge on Memorial Day weekend for a final rally in Dallas, Texas. The list of national cemeteries, along with the dates and times that they will be visited by Carry The Load marchers, can be found here.