Riekena, 22, died Jan. 14 in Baghdad when a bomb exploded near his Humvee. Riekena grew up in Missoula, but moved to Redmond, Wash., with his family in 1993 and had recently lived in Post Falls, Idaho, where he enlisted in the National Guard. He still has relatives in Missoula, however.
Riekena's funeral is set for noon Tuesday at the Christian and Missionary Alliance Church, 100 E. Foss Court. Burial will follow at Sunset Memorial Cemetery, with a reception afterward at the church.
He was a lover of literature, and had plans to go to college to become an English teacher, the Seattle Times reported. Riekena often wrote to his grandmother, Sharon Riekena, who lives in Missoula, about life in Iraq, because she had lived there for several years as a teenager.
He'd recently written by e-mail to tell his family that he was keeping fit by running every day, but said he looked forward to seeing them all soon.
Riekena was on his second tour in Iraq at the time of his death. He was a month away from his 23rd birthday.
|
 |
 |
Add your comment now! Write your comment in the form below.
(Email address is for verification only. If you'd like to email a story, look for the link above)