KIA Oct. 5, 2007 in Bayji, Iraq
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Spc. Rachael L. Hugo, 24, of Madison, Wis., died Oct. 5 in Bayji, Iraq, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked her unit using an improvised explosive device and small arms fire. She was assigned to the 303rd Military Police Company, 97th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade, U.S. Army Reserve, Jackson, Mich.
The medic reached into her pocket and removed an Army honors coin she received for saving a sergeant’s life in Iraq in February. She told her dad, Kermit Hugo, she had carried it with her ever since then to make sure she didn’t misplace it before she had a chance to give it to him.
“She said, ‘Dad, I got something for you,’ and she pulled that coin out of her pocket,” Kermit Hugo said Monday.
On Friday, Rachael Hugo found herself in a similar situation to the one in February, but with much different results.
Hugo, 24, of Madison, was killed when she went to help injured colleagues after they were hit by an improvised explosive device and came under small-arms fire in Bayji, north of Baghdad. She was deployed just over a year ago and was expected to return home in November.
Hugo’s family members gathered at the Army Reserve Center to speak publicly Monday about her life for the first time since she died.
“She saw death, destruction, despair - and a lot of good things, too,” said Kermit Hugo. “Despite it all, she always kept her head held high.”
He said she was a dedicated soldier who made it clear to her family that she loved what she did. Early in her deployment, she sent an e-mail that said, “This is what I choose to do, and being a medic is what I live to do.”
Her mother, Ruth, said: “She felt that was her niche in life, helping people. She wanted to serve her country.”
Her father, Kermit Hugo, told the story of how his daughter saved the life of a comrade during an engagement earlier this year.
A sergeant was wounded during the engagement and Rachael Hugo volunteered to go to his aid.
“She told the guys to cover her, ” Kermit Hugo said. “From the sounds of it, there were rounds going off from the Humvee. She stayed with him. She kept treating him. She just did her job. ”
Hugo, 24, was a specialist in the Army Reserve with the 303rd Military Police Company based in Jackson, Mich., part of the 89th Military Police Brigade. She was deployed to Iraq in September 2006 and was scheduled to return to the U.S. next month.
I was in Maryland last week and spent a day at Walter Reed shaking hands and thanking these great men for their service. Many a lump in the throat moments. Made me so very proud of our country. Amazing men