A Utah man and his family are mourning the death of an Army soldier but say their sense of pride somehow overshadows their loss.

U.S. Army Sgt. Michael R. Lehmiller, 23, was killed Sunday when a makeshift bomb exploded under a wooden bridge that he and his company were traveling over near Baylough, Afghanistan.

"Nobody ever thought we'd lose Mike," said Robert Lehmiller, Michael's father, a Clearfield resident. "It would have to take an improvised explosive device to take him out because you're not going to be able to take him in a firefight — ask anyone who knew him. He was too good."

Michael Lehmiller attended Clearfield High School during his senior year and enlisted in the Army in 1999, three days after earning a degree at ITT Technical Institute in Greenville, S.C., where his mother lives. Not long after that, he was sent to Iraq for an 11-month tour of duty. When he returned, he immediately re-enlisted and was sent to Afghanistan.

He told family members, on more than one occasion, that serving his country was where he belonged, his father said.

"He liked to live life on the edge," Robert Lehmiller said. "He loved the military, he loved what he did, and he wanted to continue doing it." He said his son "believed in the reasons for being there" and continually saw improvements but did think that guarding convoys was boring.

Michael Lehmiller told his father that when he was finished with his second tour in the Middle East, he would try his hand at becoming a Ranger.

"He wanted action," his father said.

The soldier once called his father while on a rooftop in Baghdad in the middle of a firefight and another time just before jumping out of a Chinook helicopter. Those phone calls are what Robert Lehmiller said he will miss most about his son, always exciting and always at random times.

In September, Michael Lehmiller was due for a two-week visit home, during which he had planned on attending a Tampa Bay Buccaneers game with his father and sisters. He was a big-time sports fan, having played nearly every sport most of his life.

"We were just going to pal around in Florida. You know, 'guy time,' " his father said.

When Michael Lehmiller's body is released to the family on Saturday, final plans for his burial will be made. The family will travel from Utah to wherever services are held, which could be South Carolina or Washington, D.C.

The U.S. Department of Defense confirmed in a Tuesday release that in addition to Lehmiller, Christopher L. Palmer, 22, of California; Joshua Hyland, 31, of Montana; and Blake Hall, 20, of Missouri; were also killed in the same blast. They were all assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade based in Vicenza, Italy.

Robert Lehmiller said his son didn't want to be maimed while fighting in the war or be forced to return home "in a shell of a person."

"I would take him back in any shape, but I guess he got his wish," he said.

Lehmiller's family is still working on funeral arrangements; however, his wishes were to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery, an honor his father said is "huge."

"It's special there," Robert Lehmiller said. "It's only filled with heroes."

---

E-mail: wleonard@desnews.com