David Bernstein

West Point, 2001

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Associated Press on October 21, 2003:

Phoenixville soldier killed in Iraq The Associated Press 10/20/2003, 8:36 p.m. ET PHOENIXVILLE, Pa. (AP) ? A West Point graduate from Pennsylvania was one of two soldiers killed in action in Iraq over the weekend, the Department of Defense said Monday. Authorities said 1st Lt. David R. Bernstein, 24, of Phoenixville, and Pfc. John D. Hart, 20, of Bedford, Mass., were killed in Taza, Iraq, on Saturday when enemy forces ambushed their patrol using rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire. Bernstein's father, Richard, described him as "an athlete and a scholar" who graduated fifth in his class at the United States Military Academy in 2001. "He was a wonderful person. He wanted to serve his country," Richard Bernstein said Monday night. "He felt like he wanted to give something back to his country." Bernstein was a member of the West Point swim team for his four years at the academy and enjoyed running, bicycling and competing in triathlons, his father said. Bernstein was his high school valedictorian at Phoenixville High School, located in a Philadelphia suburb about 20 miles northwest of the city, where the family moved before his junior year. Previously, he and his family resided in Austin, Texas. "We're going to miss him terribly, but we supported his desires to serve," Richard Bernstein said. Richard Bernstein said the family was informed of his son's death on Sunday afternoon when military authorities visited their home. Both soldiers were assigned to 1st Battalion (Airborne), 508th Infantry Regiment, 173rd Infantry Brigade at Camp Ederle, Italy. The incident is under investigation, military authorities said. As of Monday, 338 U.S. service members have died since the beginning of military operations in Iraq, according to the Department of Defense.

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