NEWCOMERSTOWN, OH, USA U.S. Army SPC, COMPANY A, 2D BATTALION, 69TH ARMOR, (2 MEF), FORT BENNING, GA AR RAMADI, IRAQ 10/15/2005
The first time his son went to war in Iraq, Richard A. Hardy’s dad got a tattoo on his back in his son’s honor. Now it is a memorial. “I am very proud of him,” said Richard D. Hardy.
The younger Hardy, 24, of Newcomerstown, Ohio., was killed Oct. 15 in Ramadi by a roadside bomb. A 2000 high school graduate, he was assigned to Fort Benning and was an expert with a carbine and also was a qualified Bradley gunner.
Brigadier General Tod Carmony noted that on the same day Hardy died, “millions of Iraqis also braved death to vote for their constitution. By being there, Richard gave the Iraqi people a chance to move a step closer to freedom and democracy.”
Hardy planned after his return in December to “bum around for a couple of months and do nothing,” his father said. Then he planned on getting a job as a welder.
There were two things he adored: riding dirt bikes and barbecue.
“Every time he came home, he had to have a barbecue,” said his dad. “He said there was nothing like a home-cooked meal.”
He also is survived by his stepmother, Jodi Hardy; and his mother, Doris G. Espenschied Hardy.