NEPTUNE SOLDIER KILLED IN IRAQ Published in the Asbury Park Press 02/4/05 By A. SCOTT FERGUSON and DAN KAPLAN STAFF WRITERS Sgt. Stephen R. Sherman A former student at Manasquan and High Technology high schools known for his love of sports and the outdoors died on Thursday when insurgents attacked his Army unit near Mosul, Iraq. Sgt. Stephen R. Sherman, 27, was the oldest of four children of a Willow Drive family. He had joined the Army in April 2003 and had been in Iraq since October. Sherman was a passenger in an armored Stryker combat vehicle when it was hit by a homemade bomb in the early morning hours, said Henry Kearney, a spokesman for Fort Monmouth. During his short time there, Sherman had survived an insurgent attack in December that killed more than 20 of his fellow soldiers inside a mess hall in Mosul, Kearney said. "Our family is deeply saddened, and our hearts are heavy," Sherman's family wrote in a joint statement that was released by the Army. "Stephen was a great son, grandson, brother, nephew, cousin, and a dedicated soldier who was devoted to making the world a better place." After completing basic training, Sherman became a chemical operations specialist. As a noncommissioned officer, Sherman oversaw other soldiers who looked for and decontaminated nuclear, biological and chemical weapons in Iraq. He also maintained and supervised chemical equipment and supplies for the Army. "He died fighting for what he believed in, and our entire family is proud of his service," Sherman's family said in their statement. "We will always remember Stephen as a hero. He will forever be missed by his family and by his many friends." Sherman was part of the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division based out of Fort Lewis, Wash. Born in Arlington, Va., in 1977, Sherman and his family moved to Spring Lake Heights when he was 11. They moved to Neptune four years ago. High school athlete Bruce Jeska, who coached Sherman on the wrestling team at Manasquan High School, remembered him as "a hard worker who always gave his all." Jeska, the high school's wrestling coach from 1993 to 2003, recalled the day when Sherman showed up to a wrestling practice a few years ago. He had just finished basic training and came to inform Jeska of his Army plans. Sherman told Jeska that the discipline he gained through wrestling helped him get through the rigors of camp. "He was really excited to go into the military," Jeska recalled. "I think he may have even had his uniform on. He was proud of it. That was probably the last I saw of him." Sherman was a freshman at Manasquan, then was admitted to High Technology High School on the Brookdale Community College campus in Middletown for his sophomore through senior years, graduating in 1996. He continued to wrestle at Manasquan for all four years. Manasquan High School Principal Cary D. McCormack remembered Sherman as "a very, very nice person" who was a friend of McCormack's son, Michael. "When it's one of your own, it definitely does hit home," McCormack said Thursday. Sherman's whole family was athletic, McCormack said. Edward Sherman, a younger brother, played basketball at Manasquan. Australia to the Caymans Sherman attended the University of Oregon, earning a degree in business administration in 2001. He spent a semester at La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia. He enjoyed outdoor sports and was interested in survival skills, which included an 80-day Outward Bound Excursion survival skills training course. Before joining the Army two years ago, Sherman managed a Budget Rent-A-Car franchise in the Cayman Islands. Stephen Sherman is survived by his mother, Bernadette Sherman of Neptune; his father, Richard W. Sherman of Great Falls, Va.; his brothers, Eddie and Danny, and his sister, Caitlin; his grandmothers, Rose Wildeman of Point Pleasant and Beverly Marten of Dover, Del.; and several aunts, uncles and cousins.