stokely_webextra2Army Sergeant Michael Stokely enlisted in the Georgia Army National Guard straight out of high school. He deployed to Iraq in 2005, where he was killed by a roadside bomb.

At StoryCorps, his father, Robert Stokely talks about traveling to Iraq to pay tribute to his fallen son.

Originally aired June 15, 2013, on NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday.

Top: Robert and Michael, who died on deployment in Iraq in 2005. Photos courtesy of Robert Stokeley