Story filed 4-15-05

By Ashley Rowland
Staff Writer

LENOIR CITY, Tenn. -- Sgt. 1st Class Stephen Kennedy always was willing to do one of his military buddies a favor, especially if he could expect a Moon Pie in return. And he always kept a stash of his favorite snack nearby, even in the deserts of Iraq.

"There was never a Moon Pie not in arm's reach of him," said Cpl. Heath Verhoeven, one of about 225 people who attended Thursday's funeral for the resident of Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Sgt. Kennedy, 35, died April 4 during an insurgent ambush in Iraq, where he had been stationed since November with the 278th Regimental Combat Team.

Cpl. Verhoeven said the sergeant was "the best noncommissioned officer" he ever met.

"He was a leader," he said.

Family and friends packed the chapel and an adjoining room at a Lenoir City funeral home for the ceremony, held at 7 a.m. in honor of Sgt. Kennedy's habit of waking up early. Many attending were members of the military or spouses of his fellow solders in Iraq.

Sgt. Kennedy died during four hours of close combat with insurgents. An American soldier from another unit, two Iraqi soldiers and 17 insurgents also died in the firefight.

Sgt. Kennedy, an 11-year military veteran, also served in the first Persian Gulf War. He joined the Tennessee National Guard in 1998, and became a full-time employee at his unit's armory in Lenoir City about a year ago.

Pastor Ronny Jones of Kingston Pike Baptist Church, who performed the service, said the Cub Scout leader and Little League baseball coach loved his four children more than anything. Sgt. Kennedy had another daughter, about 2 years old, who died several years ago from injuries suffered in a car accident.

"When he lost his daughter, he wouldn't leave her side," said Sgt. Kennedy's mother, Jo Kennedy, of Rockledge, Fla. "He brought all of us through that."

Mrs. Kennedy said her son's death leaves his family with "a lot of emotions."

"You have a lot of questions that you know aren't going to be answered right away," she said. "In time, God will give you the answers."

At the end of the service, dozens of servicemen and servicewomen slowly filed by his coffin and saluted, one by one.

After the funeral, friends and family shared memories of a man with a deep Christian faith, love of family, the military and, of course, Moon Pies.

When the 278th was training in Mississippi, Sgt. Kennedy once passed up a late-night outing with his fellow soldiers because he wanted to be there to greet his family when they arrived at 3 a.m., Spc. John Covington said.

"He couldn't wait to get home (from Iraq)," said Spc. Covington, who was not deployed for medical reasons. "He put family first, always."

Sgt. Kennedy loved to laugh, even at himself. He was known for having a tuft of hair that made him look "like a banty rooster" when he took off his helmet, Sgt. 1st Class Richard Stooksbury said.

Even during the firefight that killed him, Sgt. Kennedy made other soldiers laugh by joking about his hair, he said.

"Even though he'd had trials in his life, he'd be managing to convince you it was a great day, another opportunity to make something happen," he said.

Rockville, Tenn., resident Virginia Stephens said didn't know Sgt. Kennedy but attended the funeral to show support for the soldier's family. Her husband is stationed with another 278th unit in Iraq.

The death of a fellow soldier is difficult for those serving in Iraq -- and for those left at home, she said.

"It's horrible," she said. "(Soldiers) spend all their time telling us that it won't happen to them, but this is the second funeral I've been to in two weeks."

E-mail Ashley Rowland at arowland@timesfreepress.com

On the Web: Photos by U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Russell Lee Klika of the 278th Regimental Combat Team are available on the Times Free Press Web site. Visit http://www.timesfreepress.com/kp.

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