Army Spc. Craig S. Ivory
Death: Aug 17, 2003
of Port Matilda Pa.; assigned to the 501st Forward Support Company 173rd Airborne Brigade Southern European Task Force Vicenza Italy; Died of a non-combat-related cause Aug. 17 in Homberg University Hospital Germany. Ivory had been medically evacuated from Kuwait on Aug. 12. It wasn’t until he became a medic that Spc. Craig S. Ivory found his niche. “Initially when he went into the Army they made him a mechanic which he hated” said his father Patrick J. Ivory. “He re-enlisted to become a medic.” The 26-year-old from Port Matilda Pa. Died Aug. 17 after suffering a stroke while serving in Iraq. He was based in Vicenza Italy. Although he was not in a combat unit Craig Ivory often was among the first medical responders when soldiers were injured in combat. He hoped to become a physician assistant after completing his service his father said. As a high school student Craig Ivory lettered in football and track and field and played clarinet and bass clarinet in the school’s concert and symphonic bands. He joined the Army in January 1997 and re-enlisted twice. — Associated Press Operation Iraqi Freedom