Bert E. Hoyer
Date of Death: 03/10/2004
Age: 23
Incident Location: Baqouba, Iraq
Hometown: Ellsworth
Branch of Service: Army
Unit: 652nd Engineer Company, Army Reserve
Unit Base: Ellsworth, Wisconsin
Army Pfc. Bert. E. Hoyer, 23, of Ellsworth, Wis., assigned to the 652nd Engineer Company, Army Reserve, Ellsworth, Wis., was killed March 10, 2004, when an improvised explosive device hit his convoy in Baqubah, Iraq
Bert was born October 28, 1980, in Red Wing, Minn., the son of Larry and Peggy (Kline) Hoyer. He was a 1999 graduate of Ellsworth High School and entered the U.S. Army Reserve, 652nd Engineer Company, in 2001. When Spc. Bert E. Hoyer enlisted in the Army Reserves, he was looking for a way to pay for college. But he discovered he liked the reserves and talked about re-enlisting. "He was proud of what he was doing, and he knew why he was doing it", Larry Hoyer said of his son. Hoyer had exchanged letters and e-mails with sixth-grade students in Ellsworth and was preparing to return home when he was killed.
While in the service of his country, Bert was promoted to the rank of Specialist Fourth Class and received the Army service medal and the Army Reserve component achievement medal. Brig. Gen. Michael W. Beasley, commanding general of the 88th Regional Support Command, presented Hoyer’s parents, Larry and Peggy, with four medals their son had earned, including the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. Saying Hoyer gave more than he received and was always there for his family and community, Barry Foy of Ellsworth, a retired staff sergeant with 652nd who served with Hoyer, said the young man’s spirit will remain with all who knew him.
Bert was born October 28, 1980, in Red Wing, Minn., the son of Larry and Peggy (Kline) Hoyer. He was a 1999 graduate of Ellsworth High School and entered the U.S. Army Reserve, 652nd Engineer Company, in 2001. When Spc. Bert E. Hoyer enlisted in the Army Reserves, he was looking for a way to pay for college. But he discovered he liked the reserves and talked about re-enlisting. "He was proud of what he was doing, and he knew why he was doing it", Larry Hoyer said of his son. Hoyer had exchanged letters and e-mails with sixth-grade students in Ellsworth and was preparing to return home when he was killed.
While in the service of his country, Bert was promoted to the rank of Specialist Fourth Class and received the Army service medal and the Army Reserve component achievement medal. Brig. Gen. Michael W. Beasley, commanding general of the 88th Regional Support Command, presented Hoyer’s parents, Larry and Peggy, with four medals their son had earned, including the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. Saying Hoyer gave more than he received and was always there for his family and community, Barry Foy of Ellsworth, a retired staff sergeant with 652nd who served with Hoyer, said the young man’s spirit will remain with all who knew him.