3 Georgia guardsmen killed in Afghanistan

John C. Beale of Riverdale played with toy soldiers as a child.

As an adult, he served in the U.S. Army, went to war and later joined the Georgia Army National Guard.

Maj. Kevin M. Jenrette of Lula

Staff Sgt. John C. Beale of Riverdale

Spc. Jeffrey W. Jordan of Cave Spring

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A military career, his parents say, was John’s goal in life.

“He was a good person,” Beale’s stepmother, Dolly Beale of Riverdale, said by phone Saturday.

Beale, 39, was one of three Georgia Guardsmen killed in action Thursday in Afghanistan.

“He was fighting for his country,” the stepmother said. “He loved what he was doing for his country.”

Also killed were Spc. Jeffrey W. Jordan, 21, of Cave Spring; and Maj. Kevin M. Jenrette, 37, of Lula. The three servicemen served with the 1st Batallion, 108th Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition Squadron of the 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

They died of wounds suffered when their convoy struck a roadside bomb and came under small arms fire near Kapisa province in northeast Afghanistan, according to the U.S. Defense Department.

They were there to train Afghan security force officers and police forces. The unit had only been deployed for about three weeks.

Macon City Councilman Rick Hutto recalled a rousing April 22 sendoff the people of his city gave Guard units before they were deployed.

“I was delighted at seeing so many people come out to see them off,” Hutto said by phone Saturday. His east Macon district includes the headquarters of the 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

The brigade is deploying half of its 4,500 soldiers to Afghanistan over the next few weeks. Lt. Col. Kenneth Baldowski, the guard’s state public affairs officer, called their deaths a blow not just to the unit, but to the entire Guard.

Jordan, who as a civilian was employed by Floyd County Prison, had a wife and a 1-year-old son. He enlisted in the guard in 2006.

Jenrette was married and had three young children. He joined the Army in 1995 and served as a Ranger instructor. He became a member of the Georgia guard in 2005.

Beale served with the Army from 1991 until his discharge in 1994, then joined the guard in 2005.

His parents said he was a veteran of Operation Desert Storm in 1991, the first U.S.-Iraq war. A brother served in the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989.

Beale worked for the Clayton County Water Authority, where his wife, Crystal, also works. A son and daughter also survive him.

Beale’s father, William, a former sailor, said his son was always oriented toward the service and joined the military after graduating from Riverdale High School.

“It was the only thing he ever wanted to do,” William Beale said.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.