19-year-old Donald Young, killed Wednesday in Iraq, is Helena’s fifth war casualty

Three months have passed since Helena added the names of two more fallen soldiers to its war monument in Memorial Park.

Back then, on that warm spring day, the hope was that the names would be the last the city would add to what, even then, appeared as a growing list of local men who have died in the Iraq war.

Now, it's time to add another.

Spec. Donald Young, a 19-year-old soldier from Helena, became the fifth and youngest soldier from the state's capital to die in battle when his vehicle struck an IED Wednesday evening in Baghdad.

Young is the son of Richard Cleary, who lives in Helena, and Cheryl Young, who resides in Joplin, Mo. Neither were available for comment Friday.

Gene Prendergast, retired adjutant general of the Montana National Guard, led the working group to refurbish the city's war memorial at Memorial Park, including a new plaque remembering the fallen veterans of the Iraq war.

The names of Capt. Michael MacKinnon and Cpl. Phillip Baucus, both of Helena, were added to the wall in November 2006. Sgt. Scott Dykman and Staff Sgt. Shane Becker, also of Helena, were added in May of this year.

A third ceremony for Young may be held as early as Veterans Day in November, though Prendergast said the details were still being worked out.

"We're going to meet next Tuesday to make the final preparations," said Prendergast. "I was hoping we'd have a break between Memorial Day and Veterans Day, but it wasn't meant to be."

Calling the state's veterans the "chosen few," Prendergast expressed his sadness over seeing another young soldier fall in the line of duty.

Young is the fifth Helena soldier killed in Iraq or Afghanistan, and the 20th in Montana.

"It's very difficult," Prendergast said. "They're serving their country. They're giving up their life to defend the people of the U.S. There's always the sadness and recognition of what this young man did for this country."

Nobody knows that better than John MacKinnon, father of Capt. MacKinnon, the soldier who was killed in Iraq in October 2005, becoming Helena's first casualty of the Iraq war.

Back then, Capt. MacKinnon was only the ninth Montanan killed in the war.

"You feel for the family," said Mr. MacKinnon. "You feel close to them, even though you might not know them."

Bethany MacKinnon, Capt. MacKinnon's wife and the mother of his two children, also understands the grieving process, and what it's like to lose a loved one to the war.

Faith and family, she said, helped her get through difficult times.

"God has a bigger plan," she said. "I try to surround myself with better things."

Bethany said that while the Army is now a part of her past, she doesn't blame the military for her husband's death. She still supports the U.S. mission overseas, and the troops at home and abroad.

"I still believe that we should be there," Bethany said. "We must finish what we've started. Yes, it's very sad, but we're doing the right thing."

Whenever the city loses a soldier or Marine to the war, the community has, in the past, come together. After all, the degrees of separation in a town like Helena remain small, even as the city grows.

In high school, Capt. MacKinnon knew Cpl. Phillip Baucus, who became the second Helenan killed in the war. The two families sat side by side on Veterans Day in 2006, when their sons' names were added to the city's memorial wall.

Mr. MacKinnon's daughters also new Sgt. Scott Dykman, who was killed in Iraq in December 2006. It's too soon to know what circle will bring Spec. Young's memory home.

"We've known a couple of the families," Mr. MacKinnon said. "That's the reason I try to show up for most of the military things. You feel for the family. You feel like you want to honor them."

Reporter Martin Kidston can be reached at 447-4086 or at mkidston@helenair.com.