Funeral arrangements are still in the works for Sgt. 1st Class Justin Monschke, who died Sunday in an explosion in southern Baghdad.

Justin Monschke

Meanwhile, his family and friends in the Krum area remembered him as a hero who died doing a job he loved.

His mother, Patty Jett, said he was well trained and took every opportunity he could to better himself.

“Justin died a hero. He was going after terrorism when he got killed,” she said. “He gave it his all.”

He wanted to go into the Army ever since he was a boy and he played with little Army men, Jett said.

She said he didn’t e-mail often from Iraq because he had few opportunities to do so, but last week, he did e-mail her to say he had been recommended to receive a bronze star for valor and a silver star.

“He put everything into what he did,” she said. “Whatever he did, he went over and beyond.”

Funeral arrangements are pending with Bill DeBerry Funeral Directors. A horse-drawn carriage will carry his body, Jett said.

Monschke, 28, a Special Forces Green Beret sergeant, encountered an improvised explosive device on Sunday.

Monschke was serving in the southern Baghdad region of Arab Jabour, Iraq, as a Special Forces Operational Detachment — Alpha Team weapons sergeant assigned to Company B, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, N.C.

He earned the legendary Green Beret in 2002.

Monschke had extensive advanced military tactics, paratroop, emergency medical, Ranger, Special Forces and non-commissioned officer training. He earned two Army Commendation medals, three Army Achievement medals, three Good Conduct medals, a National Defense Service medal, an Armed Forces Expeditionary medal, campaign medals in Afghanistan and Iraq, a Global War on Terrorism medal, and numerous badges and ribbons.

He served as an instructor at the U.S. Army Ranger Training Battalion in Georgia and as a squad leader and observer/controller at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La.

He deployed in Operation Iraqi Freedom in July as a member of the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force. This was his second deployment in the military and his first in Iraq.

He is survived by his wife, Melissa, his daughter and son, Ashley and Ryan, and stepson, Dylan, of Lillington, N.C.; his father, Larry Monschke of Fort Worth; his mother, Patty Jett of Denton; and a brother, Jarrett Monschke, a Denton firefighter and paramedic.

In Krum, where Monschke graduated from high school in 1997, his teachers were solemn and shared positive memories of him.

Many knew of Monschke’s desire to enlist in the military when he was in high school.

Mike Pierson, who became principal at Krum High School during Monschke’s senior year, called Monschke a “very bright and respectful young man.”

“It’s no surprise at all to see that he became a Green Beret,” Pierson said. “When you look at what that requires — mentally agile, physically tough — that was Justin.”

Donn Arnold, a science teacher, said Monschke was modest.

“He was not a flashy guy,” Arnold said. “He didn’t brag on himself; he did the work and let the work speak for itself. He was kind of old-school that way.”

Pennye Segars taught Monschke’s Spanish class at Krum and she remembered him as quiet. He had a tight group of friends, she said.

“My prayers go out for his family; I can’t imagine what that must be like,” she said. “It’s hard here because we have seniors signing up to go into the military every day. I look at their faces and I wonder where they might go.”

Troy Hamm, Krum school district superintendent and former head basketball coach, said he knew Monschke was proud to enlist in the military, and his death has saddened the entire community.

“This is a real tragedy,” Hamm said. “We read about it and see it on the news, but this is the first time it’s really hit close to home for our community in Krum. It’s hard.”

MATTHEW ZABEL can be reached at 940-566-6884. His e-mail address is mzabel@dentonrc.com .