During his visit this week to the Middle East, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. joined soldiers in Afghanistan to honor the state's most recent casualty in the war on terror, Utah National Guard 2nd Lt. Scott Lundell.

Lundell, 35, will be buried today at the Benjamin City Cemetery. The West Valley man was killed Nov. 25 in Afghanistan when he and other soldiers came under attack by small-arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades.

Lundell was one of more than 100 Utahns serving with the I Corps Artillery, which is helping to train the Afghan National Army. On Thursday, members of the unit and the governor remembered Lundell in "a very moving service," Huntsman's spokesman, Mike Mower said.

"It was a somber and fitting tribute in honor of someone who was well-respected and loved by his fellow soldiers," Mower said. The governor "expressed his gratitude for the service and sacrifice of Lt. Lundell."

Huntsman is scheduled to return to the United States today, after meeting with troops as well as government officials in Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan. The trip included governors from New York, New Jersey and Oregon and was organized by the U.S. Department of Defense.

Capt. Micah Tebbs, commander of Alpha Company, 2-211th Aviation, called the governor's visit Tuesday to his unit in Iraq a "pleasant surprise" that meant a lot to his soldiers.

"He took the time to speak with each soldier and ask them about their family and how they were doing," Tebbs said in an e-mail. "I noticed a considerable boost in morale due to his visit."

Tebbs said Huntsman posed with each soldier for photos in front of a helicopter. The unit presented the governor with a flag that soldiers flew on a mission the night before his visit, which concluded with a chat with about 15 soldiers at a table in a dining facility.

"The most important part of the governor's trip was spending time with Utah troops during the holiday season and thanking them for their service," Mower said. He said Huntsman met Friday with injured Utah troops being treated in Germany.

This is Huntsman's second trip to the Middle East this year. In March, he traveled to the region with a delegation of governors and members of Congress led by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

Because governors are the commanders in chief of many of the troops deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan and other parts of the Middle East, Huntsman has said they need to see for themselves what's happening in the war on terror.

About 440 Utah Air and Army National Guard members are currently serving in support of either Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom, which includes Afghanistan, the Philippines and several other countries, according to a Guard spokesman.

Utah first lady Mary Kaye Huntsman will attend services for Lundell, Mower said.

Lundell leaves behind his wife, Jeanine, and four children, ages 3, 5, 8 and 10. The Scott Lundell Memorial Fund has been established to benefit the family. Donations to the trust fund can be made at any Mountain America Credit Union.

An online memorial in Lundell's honor has been set up at www.MeM.com and can be found there by typing his name into the search engine.

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E-mail: lisa@desnews.com; sspeckman@desnews.com