Sacrifice of Two Soldiers Is Honored at Arlington

A few hours later, more than 50 mourners gathered nearby to honor Veverka, 25, who was killed May 6 in Diwaniyah, Iraq, by an improvised explosive device.

Veverka was assigned to the Army National Guard's B Company, 3rd Battalion, 172nd Infantry Regiment, based in Brewer, Maine. Staff Sgt. Dale J. Kelly Jr., 48, of Richmond, Maine, also was killed in the explosion.

Veverka attended Jamestown High School, where he was leading scorer on a basketball team that was 0-21 his senior year. "David was about 5-10 -- we would stretch him to 5-11," basketball coach Scott Taylor said. "He battled guys that were 6-4, 6-5 every night, but he was a hard worker. He never gave up."

Teachers said Veverka was in the top 10 percent of his high school class. After graduating, he joined the Army as a way to pay for his education at the University of Maine, where he was studying wildlife ecology.

Last year, Veverka was appointed to a fellowship program for "unusually promising students" designed to inspire young scientists. For months, Veverka worked with a sixth-grade class to design a biodiversity project, said Susan Brawley, the fellowship coordinator.

"When he heard that his unit was likely to be called up in November, he called me right away," Brawley said. "He was very concerned that this project continue once he left. He had that sense of responsibility."

Veverka was to graduate with his class this month and was considering attending graduate school in California. University officials awarded him a posthumous degree May 13. "He would have been an extraordinary biologist," Brawley said.

Although most of the students at Jamestown High are too young to remember Veverka, he has inspired many of them, Principal Brian Keyser said.

"He really was the all-American kid who came from a small town, from working-class parents," Keyser said. "He showed that it doesn't matter what your background is -- you can still do great things. He's a great role model."