Chase A. Haag

No. 985-06
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 03, 2006
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Cpl. Chase A. Haag, 22, of Portland, Ore., died in Baghdad, Iraq, on Oct. 1 when an improvised explosive device detonated
near his vehicle.Haag was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.

From the 1-22 Infantry newsletter "Regulars, By God!" Volume 1 Issue 10 October 15, 2006

Lastly, I regret to inform the Gator community of the loss of Sergeant Chase Haag on October 1st, 2006. Sergeant Haag was killed
while conducting a combat patrol on the outskirts of Western Baghdad when his vehicle was struck by an IED. Sergeant Haag
was assigned to 1st Platoon and was cross attached to D Company at the time of the incident. He was a stand-out performer
and his loss was one that affected each and every Soldier assigned to this company. I ask that you keep his family in your prayers
during this tough time. Please be assured that this only strengthens our resolve to defeating the insurgency in our respective area.
I wish you all the best and we will be home soon.
—Captain Drew Conover (Gator 6)

At a memorial service held at Fort Hood October 19, 2006,
Chase Haag was remembered with the following:
Sgt. Chase A. Haag, 22, was "a make-it-happen Soldier," said 2nd Lt. Matthew Thompson.
Haag enjoyed watching "Cops" and "The West Wing," and his favorite drink was Coca-Cola.

Chase Haag in Iraq

Photo courtesy of
Mellissa Cummings
of the Alpha Company
Family Readiness Group

Portland Soldier Killed By Roadside Bomb
Also on KOIN.com

Parkrose Grad Killed In Iraq

PORTLAND - A memorial service is planned for a Portland soldier killed in Iraq.

Cpl. Chase A. Haag died Sunday in Baghdad when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle.
The 22-year-old was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment,
1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.

Haag's uncle, Jim McIntyre, says his nephew took the perils of life in Baghdad in stride
and never second-guessed America's task in Iraq. He said Haag never stopped putting others before himself
and never forgot the love of his family.

"He was an infantry soldier. He was completely committed to what he was doing.
I think to him the danger was something that was so much a fact of life that he was looking beyond it,"
McIntyre told KOIN News 6.

A Chase Haag scholarship is being created to help students at his alma mater, Parkrose High School.
Donations can be made at the school.

A memorial service will be held at 7 p.m. Friday at Parkrose High School.

10/4/2006

KOIN News 6

Killed in Iraq - Stunned Parkrose teachers remember Chase Haag as a "wonderful individual"
who was "passionate about leadership"

When Chase Armstrong Haag was a junior at Portland's Parkrose High School,
he wasn't afraid to stand up for what he thought was right,
even if his ideas didn't necessarily fit with those of his peers.

In one afternoon class, when many students were acting up, Haag stood up to quiet them down.

"He made a bold statement," said Maria Fuhrmann, a former teacher of Haag's.
"He said: 'You guys, that's not the way to act.' "

It was no surprise to Fuhrmann and other teachers that Haag,
who graduated from Parkrose in 2002, went into the U.S. Army.

"He was just passionate about leadership, going out and making a difference," she said.

The Department of Defense announced Tuesday that Cpl. Haag, 22, of Portland, died Sunday in Baghdad
when a bomb exploded near his vehicle. He was assigned to the 4th Infantry Division, based at Fort Hood, Texas.

He was the 76th member of the military from Oregon or Southwest Washington to die in Iraq or Afghanistan.

A memorial for Haag is planned at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Parkrose High School, said Principal Roy Reynolds.

"He had his own style, his own way of doing things," Fuhrmann said.
"That's what we're going to miss. It's just a shame."

Haag's family did not want to talk to reporters Tuesday. But a group of his former teachers and advisers
gathered after school to talk about him.

"We've just lost such a wonderful individual," teacher Carol Hanson said.
"He would have given a lot to the community."

Volleyball coach Brian Davis was not one of Haag's teachers but had a friendship with him.
They shared music, and Haag would often mix compact discs for Davis.

"I know it's hard for the family and hard for teachers," Davis said, fighting back tears. "It's hard for me."

The group of teachers included Bob Forrest, a video instructor who retired two years ago.
He said Haag was enamored with the craft of video production, direction and editing.
In a class of 30, Haag produced and directed a monthly news magazine for students.
Forrest remembered, "above all, his integrity."

Forrest said he suffered some health issues in his last five years of teaching
but could always count on Haag to take over the class.

"The other students looked up to him," he said.

After Haag graduated, he kept his hand in video. He did freelance projects, often borrowing equipment from Forrest.

Teacher Julie Romey hired Haag to produce her wedding video and said he was very professional.
She said she's in shock at his death.

"It's very surreal to be sitting in front of TV cameras talking about a student that I had," she said.

Haag was a member of Romey's first class at Parkrose to graduate.
Tracy Grant, Haag's counselor, also shared that distinction.

Despite the realities of war and death, Grant said it was not time to talk about politics.
Grant spoke earlier in the day with Haag's relatives and said Haag believed in serving his country.

"This is what Chase wanted to do," Grant said. "I respect him for doing that.
I think it's important for us as teachers to support students in what they want to do."

But that doesn't make the news any easier to bear.

"You send them out of here, and you think that their future is so bright," Fuhrmann said.
"It's just so odd to think that he's gone."

Mark Larabee: 503-294-7664; marklarabee@news.oregonian.com

The Oregonian

When adulthood beckoned after graduation from Parkrose High School in 2002, Chase Haag joined the U.S. Army and became a good soldier.

On Friday night, about 300 family members, friends and others from the community joined in a memorial service for him
at the school. He was honored for his military service and remembered as a multidimensional person:
son and brother, friend and funny guy.

Brandon Haag of Gresham, one of his two brothers, said that as kids Chase was his sidekick and "a brother who was just so good at life."

"He gave his life the only way he thought was right, and nobody can take that away from him," the older brother said.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that Cpl. Haag, 22, of Portland died Sunday in Baghdad
when a bomb exploded near his vehicle.

Assigned to the 4th Infantry Division, based at Fort Hood, Texas, Haag was the 76th member of the military with ties to Oregon
or Southwest Washington to die in Iraq or Afghanistan.

On Wednesday, his rank was upgraded to sergeant.

This week, his teachers at Parkrose talked about his leadership qualities, music interests and fascination with video production,
direction and editing.

In a video made by his video teacher, Bob Forrest, and shown during the service, Haag is shown chronicling daily life
at Parkrose as a stern-faced news anchor and as a jovial reporter for Parkrose Community Television.

Another Parkrose staff member recalled Haag's good-time persona, calling on a friend of Haag's in the audience
to confirm a rumor about a prank late in his senior year.

Yes, the friend said: Haag was among the seniors who shook the school's "Senior Bench" from its foundation
and placed it on the school roof.

Such zest for life defined Chase for his younger sister, Ana Haag, of West Linn.

"Chase, he was one of a kind," she said, standing at the podium with her mother, Bonnie Gilkison of Milwaukie,
and father, Frank Haag of Portland, behind her.

"If there was ever a standard set, Chase broke it. . . . And if there was ever a bar, he met it and went above and beyond it."

Such was his approach to being a soldier, as conveyed in the last letter he wrote, dated Oct. 1:

"We are happy as our tenure here is coming to an end, but we are dog tired, exhausted and ready to get out of here.
Thank you for thinking of us, and we are doing good things."

A candlelighting ceremony around the Parkrose High flagpole followed the memorial service in the school's performing arts center.
As many small flames glowed in the darkness, the flag was slowly lowered to half-staff.

Chase also is survived by older brother Marine Cpl. Taylor Haag, based at Camp Pendleton, Calif. A family member said
Taylor Haag was on his way from Guam to join the family.

Haag's body arrived Thursday at Dover Air Base, Del. Funeral arrangements are pending.

From the Oregonian

HAAG, SGT. CHASE ARMSTRONG 1984-2006. Our son, brother, grandson and nephew, Sgt. Chase Armstrong Haag,
born June 11, 1984, lost his life in the service of his country Sunday, Oct. 1, 2006, in Baghdad, Iraq. Chase was an engaging
young man with a quick smile and ready encouragement for everyone who knew him. He had great love of family, friends
and community. His honesty and integrity were beyond reproach. He possessed a selfless sense of duty, often placing the needs
of others above his own. Chase was totally committed to job at hand and was a born leader. His goal beyond his military duties
was to obtain his criminal justice degree and join local law enforcement. He was committed to service to his community and
his heart was set on making a difference wherever he could. His death is a devastating loss to his parents, siblings and friends.
Chase leaves his mother Bonnie Gilkison; father, Frank Haag; brother, Cpl. Taylor Haag, USMC and his wife, Jessica;
brother, Brandon Haag and his wife, Kristen; sister, Ana Haag; and grandparents, Bonnie Dukes and William Furgason.
Chase is also mourned by his aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, teachers and fellow soldiers. Funeral services to be held at
New Hope Community Church, 11731 SE Stevens Rd., Portland, at 11 a.m. Monday, Oct. 16, 2006.
Interment at Willamette National Cemetery. .

Published in The Oregonian on Oct. 14, 2006

SGT Chase A. Haag is buried at Willamette National Cemetery
in Happy Valley, Oregon Section JJ Site 434