Michelle Phaneuf said her husband served in the military in the 1990s and reenlisted after the 2001 terrorist attacks. He served in Iraq and volunteered for Afghanistan because he felt strongly about the need to serve overseas again, she said. He especially enjoyed working with the children and bringing them candy, ball-point pens, and other items they otherwise rarely could get, she said. Phaneuf died Dec. 15, 2006, when his armored vehicle struck a roadside bomb.