An 82nd Airborne Division Paratrooper from Plainfield died Friday morning after he was found unresponsive in his barracks room.
Sgt. Jeffrey A. Van Us, 26, served as an operations noncommissioned officer and later as a senior vehicle mechanic with Company B, 307th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.
"He was genuinely concerned given any circumstance that he was trying to do the right thing," said Capt. Raymond Everhart, commander of Company B, 307th Brigade Support Battalion.
"There was never a mission that he wouldn't try to accomplish; He was passionate about his job," said Sgt. Justin Hughey, Company B operations noncommissioned officer and a friend of Van Us.
Van Us joined the Army in November 2002 and attended basic training and advanced individual training at Fort Jackson, S.C. He then attended the basic airborne course in January 2003 at Fort Benning, Ga.
He arrived in Fort Bragg in March, 2004 where he served for seven months in Headquarters, 5th Pyschological Operations Battalion. He then served with the 1st Special Forces Support Group at Torii Station, Japan until coming to the 82nd Airborne Division in March 2008.
Van Us' awards and decorations include the Army Commendation Medal (three oak leaf clusters), the Army Achievement Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal (three), the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Parachute Badge and the Master Driver Badge (two).
Van Us is survived by his father, Danny Van Us of Plainfield, and his mother, Kathy Eastman.
The incident is under investigation.
