Army Spc. Jeffrey F. Nichols

Died May 01, 2008 serving during Operation Iraqi Freedom

21, of Granite Shoals, Texas; assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Polk, La.; died May 1 in Baghdad from wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device.

Fort Polk soldier killed in Baghdad

The Associated Press

FORT POLK — A Fort Polk soldier was killed in Baghdad yesterday when his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device.

Spc. Jeffrey F. Nichols, 21, of Granite Shoals, Texas, was a field artilleryman assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, according to a news release by Samantha Evans, public information officer with JRTC & Fort Polk.

Nichols enlisted in the Army in September 2005 and completed basic and advanced individual training at Fort Sill, Okla. He was assigned to Fort Polk in December 2005.

His awards and decorations include the Purple Heart, National Defense Service Medal and the Iraq Campaign Medal.

Nichols is survived by his wife and son, of Marble Falls, Texas, and his mother, of Granite Shoals.