The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Specialist Barun Rai, 24, of Silver Spring, Maryland, died August 3, 2011 in Logar province, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained during a vehicle rollover.  He was assigned to the 54th Engineer Battalion, 18th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, Warner Barracks, Bamberg, Germany.

For more information the media may contact the 21st Theater Sustainment Command public affairs office in Germany at 011-49-631-413-8184.

NOTE: Postmously promoted to Sergeant.

The 24-year-old Specialist Barun Rai from Silver Spring was killed in Afghanistan when the vehicle he was riding in rolled over, the Pentagon said. He died on Aug. 3 in Logar province.
 
Relatives told ABC7’s John Gonzalez that Rai came to the U.S. from Nepal. He dreamed of joining the army.
 
"He was a nice boy,” said Siddhesuar Das. “Very nice person, helped everybody"
 
He joined the U.S. Army a few years ago and loved it, relatives say. Most recently, he was deployed as part of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.
 
"Now everybody is sad... It’s not a good feeling,” said Sita Tamand, a relative.
 
His parents and sister came to Dover Air Force base Friday for the return of his body. At his home in Silver Spring, relatives and friends remember a caring young man.
 
"He definitely was an upright" person, neighbor Victor Sesay said.
 
He said Rai often tried to prevent parking tickets for his neighbors. Before deploying, Rai was assigned to the 54th Engineer Battalion 18th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command in Bamberg, Germany. His family was planning to visit him in two weeks.
 
Expressing himself better in Spanish, friend Walter Aguilar says the neighborhood has always been extremely proud of their local hero.
 
"It's a big loss for us, too young to lose your life... We are all left deeply saddened,” he said. “But indeed a hero fighting with valor for the country."

He was a supply clerk and a unit armorer to 54th Engineer Battalion, 18th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, Warner Barracks, Bamberg, Germany.

Sergeant Barun Rai, born in 1987 in Kathmandu, Nepal, was the oldest and second of three children of Mr. Kusum Rai and Mrs. Pushpa Rai. He attended Araniko Secondary Boarding School in Kathmandu from Kindergarten to seventh grade and Modern Preparatory Secondary English School in Itahari -1, Sunsari from eighth through ninth grade.

In 2003, Barun and his family immigrated to the United States and settled in Silver Spring, Maryland. He attended Montgomery Blair High School and graduated on June 2005. Upon completion of his high school, Barun enlisted in the US Army. He served in the ARMY from 2006 – 2011. In his five-year military career, he completed one Iraq tour and was currently deployed in Logar Province, Afghanistan. He is survived by his parents and brother Karun Rai and sister Sushma Rai. Rai family would like to invite all the friends, family and community members who wish to pay tribute to Sergeant Barun Rai.

Venue and Time:
Date: Friday, 2 September 2011
Time: 1130 – 1400
Venue: Arlington National Cemetery
              Arlington, Virginia 22211
Dress Code: Formal

RAI, BARUN   
SGT   US ARMY 
AFGHANISTAN 
DATE OF BIRTH: 06/05/1987 
DATE OF DEATH: 08/03/2011 
BURIED AT: SECTION 60  SITE 9301 
ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY

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