Army Pfc. William C. Johnson

Died June 12, 2007 serving during Operation Iraqi Freedom

22, of Oxford, N.C.; assigned to 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.; died June 12 in Baghdad of wounds sustained from an improvised explosive device.

Family, friends remember soldier killed in Iraq

The Associated Press

Army Pvt. William C. Johnson always saw himself serving his country in some way, said his father. “He always talked about going into the military,” Billy Johnson said. “To him, it just felt like something he needed to do.”

Johnson, 22, of Oxford, N.C., was killed June 12 in Baghdad by an explosive. He was a 2003 high school graduate and was assigned to Fort Riley, Kan.

“He was always smiling, always had a kind work to say, always helpful,” said Cynthia Currin, a family friend. “This is just a tragic loss.”

Billy Johnson said his son — referred to as Chris or Christopher, his middle name — was a kindhearted individual who went out of his way to help others. “He’d do anything for you — if he liked you,” Billy Johnson said.

He was an Antioch volunteer firefighter. “Anyone that from the age of 15 decides to come down to the local fire department and join, and then after that continue service and fight for the country, I’d call them a hero every day,” said Antioch Fire Capt. Clifton Peace.

He also is survived by his wife, Megan, who is expecting their first child in the fall and a daughter, Christina.