Army Staff Sgt. Jason Burkholder
July 30, 2023
Sgt. David R. Christoff
August 13, 2023
The Associated Press
Fellow Chief Warrant Officer Eric Smith, who was a Cavalry scout like Theodore U. Church, said of his friend, “He was a man’s man. He wore spurs and he knew how to use them.”
Church, 32, known as “Tuc,” of South Point, Ohio, was killed May 28 when his helicopter crashed in Muqdadiyah, Iraq, under enemy fire.
He was a 1993 high school graduate and was assigned to Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.
John Hess, friend of the late soldier said, “The time I spent with Tuc I will cherish as some of the best times of my life.” He said the two shared common interests of cars, hunting and paintball. “I have no bad memories of Tuc.”
He is survived by his wife, a 6-year-old daughter, and a 4-year-old son.
“Tuc loved motorcycles and cars. He loved to travel,” said Renee Culver, a cousin. “His first ‘son’ was a three-legged boxer pup named Gixer, who he liked to wrestle with. He made every Fourth of July a celebration with fireworks that rivaled the ones set off at major tourist attractions. He was a big joker who got away with anything because he looked so blue-eyed and innocent.”
