AT A TOWN HALL-STYLE meeting in Ontario, Calif., Bush said, “Nathan lost his life yesterday, but I can assure the parents and loved ones of Nathan Chapman that he lost his life for a cause that is just and important, and that cause is the security of the American people, and that cause is the cause of freedom in a civilized world.” Chapman, 31, a Green Beret communications specialist from San Antonio, Texas, died Friday when he was hit by small-arms fire during an ambush. He was part of a U.S. team operating near the town of Khost, a few miles from the Pakistan border, military officials said.

“This American serviceman was doing his job,” said Gen. Tommy Franks, commander of U.S. Central Command. “He was out for the purpose of working with and coordinating with tribal leaders in that area.” On Friday, his parents said in a statement that Chapman was “a proud father, loving husband, and devoted to serving his country. He loved the Army and referred to his unit as his second family,” his parents added. “We are so proud that he had grown into such a wonderful son.”

On Saturday morning, fellow Special Forces soldiers at Fort Lewis, Wash., where Chapman had been stationed, remembered him as an outgoing fighter who sought physical and mental challenges. “He embodied the warrior spirit,” said Col. David Fridovich, “but with a huge and soft heart for his family, his unit, his organization, and our country.” According to Capt. Edwin Hoenig, Chapman was “physically as strong as an ox — always the go-to person. He was very charismatic. It was always fun when Nate was around.”

Chapman’s father, Wilbur Chapman, said his son followed him into military service. Wilbur Chapman, speaking to KING-TV in Seattle, said he had served in the Air Force, and his son started to express interest in the Army during his senior year of high school. Nathan Chapman wrestled at Centerville High School in Centerville, Ohio, before graduating in 1988, said his father, who lives in Georgetown, Texas, about 25 miles north of Austin. He always had been interested in the Army Rangers and was pleased when he was accepted into the program, his father said.“He loved parenting his children, and cherished the time he had with them and his wife,” added Wilbur and his wife, Lynn, in their statement. “He loved to jet ski, snowboard and woodworking. He was a skilled marksman.”

Nathan Chapman was born April 23, 1970, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., his parents said. He served most of his career at Fort Lewis, but since the Afghan campaign he had been assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group at Fort Campbell, Ky., said Maj. Gary Kolb, a spokesman for Army Special Operations Command. The army did not immediately release further details on Chapman’s career. But his parents said he parachuted into Panama during the U.S. invasion of that country and also served in Desert Storm and Haiti. Kolb said one of Chapman’s jobs “was to make sure that communication links are active and operational.” But as a Green Beret, Kolb said, “he is adept at anything else.” Nathan Chapman, a Green Beret communications specialist, is shown in an undated file photo. Before January 04th,2002, the only U.S. military members killed inside Afghanistan were three Green Berets mistakenly hit last month by a U.S. airstrike north of Kandahar. In October, two Army Rangers were killed when their Black Hawk helicopter crashed in Pakistan. A CIA operative, Johnny “Mike” Spann, was killed Nov. 25 in an uprising of Taliban prisoners in Afghanistan. Another CIA officer was seriously wounded in Friday’s ambush but was expected to survive.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.