Army Sgt. Israel P. O’Bryan

KIA June 11, 2010 JALULA, iraq

24, of Newbern, Tenn.; assigned to the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.; died June 11 in Jalula, Iraq, of wounds suffered in a suicide car bombing. Also killed was Army Spc. William C. Yauch.

Israel “Izzy” O’Bryan found love in the military.

Not necessarily with his career but with the woman he wound up marrying — Brenna — who had been a soldier in the same brigade as O’Bryan. They had a son together, 1-year-old Turner.

His dedication to his family is evident on his Facebook page: “My life revolves around benefiting my family in any way that I can even if I have to do something that I hate.”

O’Bryan, 24, of Newbern, Tenn., was killed by a suicide bomber June 11 in Jalula, Iraq. He was assigned to Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.

An obituary published online said O’Bryan graduated from Dyer County High School in Tennessee and attended the University of Tennessee-Martin for a time. He enlisted in the Army in 2006.

The obituary says he was active in boxing, soccer and baseball and also “enjoyed a good shopping day!” While his Facebook page indicates how seriously he took his duty to his wife and daughter, it also suggests a sense of humor. One of the quotes he posted reads, “Nobody worries about rearranging the seats on the Titanic.”

Among others surviving O’Bryan are his mother and father, and his stepmother and stepfather.