U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Brian Francis Piercy, age 27, passed away on Monday, July 19, 2010, of injuries sustained after insurgents detonated an improvised explosive device in the Arghandab River Valley, Afghanistan. Brian was born on March 11, 1983, in Visalia, California. He spent the vast majority of his life living in Clovis, California, and was a proud graduate of three Clovis Unified Schools, Red Bank Elementary, Alta Sierra Intermediate, and Buchanan High. He then spent two years at Fresno Pacific University as a Liberal Studies major before enlisting in the United States Army in October 2004. Following basic and airborne training at Fort Benning, Georgia, Brian was stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, starting in 2005. While Brian was a student at Fresno Pacific, he met the love of his life, Christina Perreault. They were married on December 16, 2006. In spite of being apart for his two deployments, they developed an incredibly strong marriage filled with love, laughter, and fun. In his formative years, Brian was a solid student who loved to learn. He was an active member of the People's Church Youth Group, and through his participation, developed a deep faith. Brian had a passion for music, taking piano lessons and being an active part of his high school band's percussion section. He continued to play piano through the years, finding a way to express his ideas and feelings through both playing and composing. Brian was known for having a great sense of humor and for being a positive, upbeat person who made people around him of all ages feel comfortable and valued. When Brian joined the United States Army, he found a home there and was quickly recognized for his keen intellect and dynamic leadership abilities. He was part of the Army's 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division. Brian loved being a soldier and believed in the importance of service to his country and his fellow soldiers. He was known as a man of integrity and was well respected by all those with whom he served, including his superiors. He took his responsibilities seriously, making every effort to always have things "squared away", doing what needed to be done with honor. He proudly served his country through two deployments totaling twenty-seven months as a part of Operation Enduring Freedom. At the time of his death, Brian was less than a month from completing his second tour of duty in Afghanistan, after which he would serve the remaining fifteen months of his enlistment at Fort Bragg. Brian and his wife had plans to then move back to California in late 2011. Brian is the seventh Buchanan High School graduate to be killed while serving on active duty in either Iraq or Afghanistan since 2004. Brian is survived by his wife, Christina Perreault Piercy of Fayetteville, North Carolina; his mother, Carol Piercy, now from Los Angeles; his father, Thomas F. Piercy, III of Clovis; his fraternal twin brother, Eric Piercy of Clovis; his brother, Specialist Kevin Piercy, currently stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; his step-brother, David Piercy of Fresno; and his three grandparents, Stanley Barnes of Visalia, and Thomas F. Piercy, II, and Juanita Piercy of Tustin.

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