WAYNESBORO, PA, US
U.S. Army
SSG, SPECIAL TROOPS BN, V CORPS, 5TH HQ FORWARD DET, HEIDELBERG, GERMANY
05/18/2010, DARULAMAN, KABUL, AFGHANISTAN
The military always was an integral part of Richard Tieman’s life. He was born and raised on Army bases around the country during his father’s long military career. He enlisted in the Army just after graduation from Waynesboro Area Senior High School in 2000. He married a fellow staff sergeant, Paulina Tieman, earlier this the year while on leave from his base in Heidelberg, Germany. Richard planned to continue his military career by becoming a drill sergeant this summer at Fort Jackson, S.C.
Tieman, of Waynesboro, Pa., died May 18 in Kabul when a NATO convoy was bombed. It was his third tour of duty after serving twice in Iraq.
“He was an all-around great guy,” said Toby Ditch, Tieman’s best friend. “Anytime I’d call, he’d be there for me. No matter what we did, we had fun. He lived his life. There was never a dull moment.”
Tieman’s father served in casualty assistance, a job through which he visited families with news of a soldier’s death. He said he was hardly prepared to receive news Tuesday of his son’s death. “I’ve done casualty assistance work,” he said. “When you’re on the other side of the fence, it’s quite disturbing. Everybody is coping as well as you’d expect under the circumstances.”
Richard Tieman was apparently in charge of a convoy as it was passing the embassy when the suicide bomber set off the bomb, according to Bob Harris, director of Franklin County’s Veterans Affairs office. Tieman’s dad said the young man was serving with USAREUR headquarters and was responsible for the security of headquarters personnel. He was shuttling them from base to base.
Tieman, was set to return home in two months, and begin training to become a drill sergeant in Fort Jackson, S.C., his dad said. With 10 years in the military, he was planning to do 20 years total and retire, he said.
The last time Tieman and his dad spoke was on Friday. According to his dad: “He talked about coming home. He’d planned to go to Australia for their honeymoon.”
His family and friends remember him as a great guy. The soldier was “full of life, fun to be around, easy going, and he loved his country,” his brother, Tyler, said. “He liked playing sports, fishing, lifting weights and occasional drinking, the things that other young people typically do,” said his dad. Tyler said he was a fan of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Survivors also include his parents, Richard and Diane Tieman, and his younger brother, Tyler. Additional information about Richard can be found here……http://yourpatriotism.com/ssg-richard-tieman/