PINCKNEYVILLE - Dozens of flags line the streets of Pinckneyville in honor of hometown hero Wyatt Dale Eisenhauer. Tragically, the talented and beloved young man won't see the red, white and blue whipping in the wind.

Eisenhauer gave his all for his country on the Iraqi battlefield and as townspeople, relatives and comrades mourned their fallen friend and hero, funeral arrangements were announced Wednesday.

Eisenhauer, 26, was killed May 19 in Mahmudiyah, south of Baghdad, when an improved explosive device detonated on a bridge as the Humvee in which he was riding passed over. He was a member of the Army's 3rd brigade, 1st Armor Division's "Thunderbolt" Second Battalion, 70th Armor Regiment out of Fort Riley, Kan.

Eisenhauer was a scout and his military friends recall that he didn't fit the mold of a regular soldier but left a successful civilian business to serve his country.

"He was self-retired," said Sgt. First Class Matthew Mayo in a press release from Iraq. "He joined the military to be part of something larger than himself. With less than 11 months in the Army, he was one of the most technically proficient scouts in the platoon. He digested technical manuals like no other."

Mayo also said despite Eisenhauer's difficult job in a war zone, the young man was very compassionate.

"He could be counted on by all of his peers and would give them the shirt off of his back," Mayo said. "He was a true patriot,

serving his country when others in his position could not or would not."

"He gave his life for a higher purpose, to serve his country and help the Iraqi people pave the way for a brighter future," added Col. David Bishop, commander of the 3rd Brigade.

As Eisenhauer's comrades overseas were mourning their friend, the Perry County man's family was in route to Fort Riley for a memorial service in honor of the family's only son.

The close-knit family of Gay and Fred Eisenhauer also includes Wyatt's sisters, Rebecca Eisenhauer Anderson (the wife of Willie Anderson), Hannah and Leah, as well as grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. Wyatt's father, Fred, crafted the obituary that gives a glimpse into the heart and life of his son.

"Wyatt Dale Eisenhauer loved the outdoors, rock climbing and camping, he thoroughly enjoyed fishing as well as kayaking down Beaucoup Creek and loved animals, especially his bird Jake," Fred Eisenhauer wrote.

Wyatt Eisenhauer graduated from Pinckneyville Community High School, where he was a member of the Panther wrestling team, band, and VICA. He placed first in the state VICA Diesel Equipment Technician Competition and attended the Southern Illinois University Carbondale automotive mechanic program.

With a love of music, Eisenhauer played the trumpet, guitar, baritone and piano and set up sound systems and ran sound boards for a number of local bands.

He joined the Army in 2004, following in the footsteps of his father and his late grandfather, Fred "Fritz" Eisenhauer. After basic training at Fort Knox, Ky., he was stationed at Fort Riley before deployment to Iraq. Less than a year later, he was killed by enemy weaponry.

Visitation for Eisenhauer will be from 3 to 9 p.m. Sunday and from 8 to 10 a.m. Monday at Pyatt-Harrawood Funeral Home in Pinckneyville. The family will hold his funeral services at 11 a.m. Monday at their homestead at 4533 Red Fox Road, in the beautiful outdoors Wyatt so loved. Burial will be in Antioch Cemetery in Tamaroa.

Memorials will be accepted at the funeral home or Murphy-Wall State Bank to create the Wyatt Eisenhauer Memorial Fund. The fund is being created to provide future scholarships and for educational development.

"We are extremely proud of Wyatt Dale Eisenhauer, who, in the words of his family was a 'very humble young man, a private person with wisdom beyond his years, who made his supreme sacrifice for our nation and family he loved,'" Fred Eisenhauer penned in tribute to his son.

mathis5@hcis.net

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