Today we remember Army Pfc. Brian J. Backus, 21-years-old, killed June 18th in Afghanistan of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with small arms fire.
Backus, from Saginaw Township, Michigan, was a combat medic assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.
He joined the army in 2010 and deployed to Afghanistan in March, earning the Combat Medical Badge while he was there.
“Brian was a beautiful young man, and this is really hitting us hard,” said Rev. Paula M. Timm, pastor of Harbor Beach United Methodist Church, where Backus went to church.
“He was just in church a few months ago looking all handsome, and we sort of prayed over him and blessed him,” Timm said. “I call him a beautiful young man because he had a tender spirit, he was good-hearted and giving.”
“He had that twinkle in his eye and he was just a sweetheart. This is just breaking our hearts.”
Backus is survived by his 2-year-old son, Jack, his brother Paul, and his parents, Alan and Anne Backus.
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