Gregory McCoy

SSG Gregory McCoy, 26, of Riesel, Texas, died from injuries sustained while serving his country in Baghdad, Iraq, on Nov. 9, 2006. Services will be 11 a.m. Monday, Nov. 20, at Acts Christian Fellowship, 5201 Steinbeck Bend. A motorcycle procession led by Patriot Guard Riders will escort SSG McCoy to his interment with full Army Military Honors at 1 p.m. at Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery, 11463 State Highway 195, Killeen. Visitation will be from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 19, at OakCrest Funeral Home, 4520 Bosque. Greg was born Feb. 9, 1980, in Lansing, Mich., to Timothy and Carol McCoy, and was raised in Webberville, Mich. Upon completing high school, Greg entered the United States Army. He attended basic training at Fort Jackson, Miss. and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Knox, Ky., where he trained to be a Bradley Fighting Vehicle Mechanic. His first duty was Fort Hood where he was assigned to the 2-20th Field Artillery, 4th Infantry Division. There he met his wife, Lori Smith, of Riesel, Texas. They married Dec. 10, 1999, in Waco, and welcomed their first child, Logan Reilly, July 29, 2000. After re-enlisting in the Army in the spring of 2002, Greg attended Military Police school in Fort Leonardwood, Mo. His next duty station moved his young family to Kaiserslautern, Germany, where he was assigned to the 230th Military Police Company, 95th Military Police Battalion, 37th Transportation Command, 21st Theatre Support Command. On Sept. 23, 2003, in Landstuhl, Germany, Greg and Lori were blessed with their second son, Tyler Mason. The 230th Military Police Company deployed in March of 2004, for Operation Iraqi Freedom. While downrange, Greg re-enlisted. Upon his safe return to Germany, he and his family reported back to Fort Hood, where he was assigned to the 410th Military Police Company, 720th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade. It was with this unit, in June 2006, that Greg returned to Iraq for his second deployment. Greg and a fellow soldier were killed when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle in Baghdad. He was preceded in death by his paternal grandfather, William McCoy. Survivors include his wife, Lori McCoy, of Riesel, Texas; sons, Logan Reilly and Tyler Mason, of Riesel, Texas; parents, Timothy McCoy and Christine Ferris, of Lansing, Mich. and Robert and Carol Johnson of Howell, Mich.; sister, Michelle Potchynok and husband, Jim of Webberville, Mich.; stepbrother, Eric Johnson of Howell, Mich.; stepsister, Christina Dobroczynski and husband, Dan of Conn.; paternal grandmother, Doris McCoy of Williamston, Mich.; maternal grandparents, George and Dortha Monroe of Fowlerville, Mich.; uncles, Dan McCoy and wife, Mary of Perry, Mich., Nelson Monroe and wife, Marie, of Lansing, Mich., and Dennis Monroe of Fowlerville, Mich.; aunts, Karen Jacobs and husband, Dennis of East Lansing, Mich. and Pam McCoy and Bill Zimmerman of Williamston, Mich.; father and mother-in-law, Jerry and Gena Smith of Riesel, Texas; sisters-in-law, Tracy Hendley of Lorena, Texas and Katie Smith of Riesel, Texas; brother-in-law, Cody Smith and wife, Emily of College Station, Texas; nephews, Tanner Smith and Cayson Hendley, of Lorena, Texas; nieces, Krystlina Potchynok of Webberville, Mich. and Katie Dobroczynski of Conn.; and many cousins. Donations in SSG McCoy's name may be sent for the Veterans Memorial Wall being constructed at Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery, 11463 State Highway 195, Killeen, Texas 76542. Memorial guestbook is available at www.oakcrestwaco.com "In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility... I welcome it." President John F. Kennedy. February 9, 1980 - November 9, 2006