Army Pfc. Robert J. Settle

Died April 19, 2006 serving during Operation Iraqi Freedom

25, of Owensboro, Ky.; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 66th Armored Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; killed April 19 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations in Taji, Iraq.

McLean native had two weeks left in Iraq

OWENSBORO, Ky. — A soldier who was two weeks away from coming home on furlough was killed in Iraq this week when an explosive struck his Humvee, his family said.

Army Pvt. Robert Jason Settle, 25, was killed Wednesday, but his family wasn’t sure where he was patrolling when he died.

The Pentagon had not confirmed the death on Thursday.

Settle grew up in McLean County but moved to Owensboro before joining the military in May 2004.

He had served in Iraq for five months, his family said.

“He was wonderful,” his mother, Sharon Settle of Maceo, told the Messenger-Inquirer of Owensboro. “He loved everybody. He was happy with life. ... You could not ask for a better kid.”

His father, Barry Settle of McLean County, said, “He loved his country.”

The Settles were against their son joining the military, the newspaper said.

“He got nothing accomplished (in Iraq). And he’s dead,” Sharon Settle said.

Settle’s survivors include a 5-year-old daughter.

— Associated Press / Information from: Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer