Sgt Austin David Pratt
Born Dec. 19, 1984 in Farmington, MO
Died Dec. 15, 2007 in Balad, Iraq
Sgt. AustinD. Pratt, of Cadet, Missouri, was called Ozzie by friends and family. He grew up one of eight children born to his parents, David and Monica Pratt. When his family got together there were over 100 immediate members. From an early age Ozzie loved baseball and was a talented player as a catcher, pitcher and third baseman. He was one of the best players around and helped carry several teams to championships throughout his youth and high school days. Ozzie was also a peacemaker and mediator among the players and his peers, God and family meant the world to him. He wanted to go to college and play, but a desire to serve his country came first. Military service ran in his family, his father served in Vietnam and in the Persian Gulf with the Navy. Ozzie enlisted in the Army in May of 2004 and after basic was stationed at Fort Polk, Louisiana. He did a tour of duty in Afghanistan and was sent to Iraq assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) from Fort Polk. While on his deployments, Ozzie arranged for older baseball equipment from his old teams to get shipped overseas so the other soldiers could play ball. Ozzie died December 15 in Balad, Iraq, of injuries sustained in Baghdad, Iraq, a few days shy of reaching his 23rd birthday. While serving he was awarded the Army Commendation Medal, Posthumous, Army Good Conduct Medal, Posthumous, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Humanitarian Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, NATO Medal, Expert Infantryman, Badge, Air Assault Badge and the Weapons Qualification Badge qualifying expert with rifle. He is survived by his mother and father; six sisters; one brother; 11 nieces and nephews; twelve uncles and their wives; twelve aunts and their husbands; and numerous cousins and other relatives. He was preceded in death by paternal grandparents, Charles and Mary Ellen Pratt and Edna Jean Pratt; maternal grandparents, Edwin and Catherine Politte; two uncles, Charles Pratt, William Politte, and two aunts, Catherine “Kitty” Portell and Judith Ann Politte.
Sgt. Pratt was buried in Saint Joachim Cemetery in Old Mines, Missouri.
The Sgt Austin David Pratt by Freedom Remembered, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.
