From the South Bend Tribune
Spc. Paul Eugene Andersen killed by 'indirect gunfire' in Iraq.
By ERIN BLASKO
Tribune Staff Writer
SOUTH BEND — After he shipped to Iraq in November of last year, Spc. Paul Eugene Andersen kept in touch with his wife, Linda Andersen, through Skype, a Web application that enables video conferencing over the Internet.
She was speaking to him Thursday afternoon when the connection terminated, a common occurrence because of the frequent sandstorms in the largely arid country.
Several hours later, just before midnight, she awoke to a knock at the door.
"I asked them to hold on a minute," the 55-year-old said through tears, "because I wanted to make sure I was dressed decently enough."
When she opened the door, she was met by a chaplain.
"I knew it wasn't good after that," she said.
Not long after his face disappeared from Linda Andersen's computer monitor, Paul Andersen, a member of the 855th Quartermaster Company based out of South Bend, reportedly died from wounds suffered during an attack on his Baghdad camp by enemy forces.
The Department of Defense announced his death Monday on its Web site.
A 24-year-veteran of the armed forces, the 49-year-old was scheduled to return home Nov. 4, according to family.
"He said we were going to
spend Christmas and Thanksgiving together," Linda Andersen said.
Paul Andersen was completing his second tour of duty in Iraq, his wife said. He was assigned to "laundry and bath," she said, which meant he traveled base-to-base in a large vehicle containing laundry and shower facilities for soldiers.
"It's the most important part of the military," Linda Andersen's son, Gregory Jester, said of the job. "It makes you look good and smell good."
Linda Andersen said she worried about her husband's safety, but that her anxieties were somewhat soothed by the fact that his job rarely put him in harm's way.
"He always said he was in a safety zone," she said, "so I didn't have to worry about him."
The particulars of the attack on Paul Andersen's camp are not known. The Department of Defense has only said it involved "indirect gunfire."
Linda Andersen said she is not sure she wants to know more than that.
"I couldn't really say whether I want to really know," she said. "I don't know how much my brain and heart can take. I don't know how much they can comprehend."
Linda Andersen said she last saw her husband in August. He returned home on leave to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary, she said.
The couple married in 2004, just four months after they met cute at the home of an acquaintance, Linda Andersen said.
"I backed up and stepped on his foot," she recalled laughing, "and I just asked him what the hell he was doing and please get out of the way.
"He just stood there."
Linda Andersen said her husband explained to her early on his commitment to the Army, and that she fully accepted and supported his decision to serve.
Just prior to his death, she said, he had re-enlisted for six more years.
The past four days have been difficult to comprehend, she said.
"Hell. Tiring. Unbelievable," she said and then paused. "There are no words really that can describe how I feel.
"I take a deep breath and sometimes it helps, and sometimes it doesn't."
Paul Andersen is survived by his wife; three biological children; three step-children; one biological grandchild; and eight step-grandchildren.
His body is scheduled to return to South Bend later this week from Dover Air Force Base in Dover, Del., where it arrived Saturday.
Linda Andersen's son, Thomas Klempay, will accompany the body.
Staff writer Erin Blasko:
eblasko@sbtinfo.com
(574) 235-6187
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