Army Spec. Ryan A. Gartner

Died February 1, 2011 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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23, of Dumont, N.J.; assigned to 201st Military Intelligence Battalion, Fort Sam Houston, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas; died Feb. 1 in Bagram, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained in a non-combat incident.

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Left high school to join N.J. National Guard program

Staff and wire reports

A Texas-based soldier was killed Feb. 1 in Afghanistan, according to the Defense Department.

Army Spc. Ryan A. Gartner, 23, of Dumont, N.J., died of wounds sustained in a noncombat incident. He was assigned to the 201st Military Intelligence Battalion, Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

Matthew McHale, mayor of Dumont, N.J., told The Record of Hackensack, N.J., that Gartner was “a true patriot” who was on his second deployment.

Former classmates told the newspaper Gartner left Dumont High School before graduating and enrolled in a New Jersey National Guard program at the former Fort Dix.