Army sergeant from Bucks killed in Iraq bombing
A U.S. Army team leader from Bucks County was one of five soldiers killed by a suicide bomber in Iraq Monday in the worst attack on American forces in months.
A U.S. Army team leader from Bucks County was one of five soldiers killed by a suicide bomber in Iraq Monday in the worst attack on American forces in months.
Sgt. Shawn Michael Suzch, 32, of Levittown, had just finished interrogating a shopkeeper in Baghdad's upscale Mansour neighborhood. As Suzch's platoon left the store, the bomber, wearing an explosive vest, rushed up to the Americans and detonated the device.
Suzch, the father of a 6-month-old girl, was killed instantly.
Four soldiers under his command also died in the blast. Three others were seriously wounded. Nine Iraqis, including the platoon's interpreter, were injured, according to a release issued by the Department of Defense.
As a boy, Suzch dreamed of serving in the Army, said his foster father, Rick Pforter of Coopersburg, Lehigh County. Suzch lived with Pforter and his wife, Abby, during his junior and senior years in high school.
"The Army was where he wanted to go," Pforter said. "He was dedicated. He never considered any other career course."
As a junior at Pennridge High School, Suzch began talking to recruiters. He studied hard. After graduating from Pennridge in 1994, he enlisted immediately, Pforter said.
After basic training, Suzch was posted to Germany, where he met and married his wife, Angela. The couple had a baby boy.
"The excitement that Shawn felt after the boy was born couldn't be measured. He was so proud," Pforter said. "You have to understand, Shawn never really had a family. So for Shawn, everything was about family."
Born with a congenital lung defect, the child died a year later in Germany. Shawn and Angela were crushed, Pforter said.
The couple returned to Bucks County to bury the child.
Several years passed. Suzch participated in the invasion of Iraq as a tank driver. He reenlisted for two more tours.
"Last year, he was shipped back to Iraq knowing that Angela was pregnant," Pforter said.
Suzch was granted leave for a month to attend the birth of his daughter. Alyssa, a healthy little girl, was born Sept. 16 at Fort Stewart in Georgia.
Suzch had planned to reunite with his family in May after his tour expired.
Eleven U.S. servicemen have died this month in Iraq. Since the 2003 invasion, 3,984 Americans in uniform have been killed. Among the fatalities, 182 were from Pennsylvania and 69 from New Jersey, according to icasualties.org.
