Army Sgt. Willard T. Partridge

35, of Ferriday, La.; assigned to the 170th Military Police Company, 504th Military Police Battalion, 42nd Military Police Brigade, Fort Lewis, Wash.; killed Aug. 20 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Baghdad.

A baseball player and family man, Fort Lewis soldier lives on through his legacy

Associated Press

Despite their six-year age difference, Willard T. Partridge and his sister remained close.

“A lot of times growing up, it kind of felt like he was my son,” she said Darlene Moon, 41.

Moon said she and her brother enjoyed hunting and fishing together. Partridge, 35, of Ferriday, La., was killed Aug. 20 in Baghdad by a roadside bomb.

He was based at Fort Lewis, Wash. Partridge was a 1988 high school graduate who advanced to regional and state championships in baseball, showing talent as a pitcher. He trained in refrigeration and welding at Copiah-Lincoln Community College. When the rubber company he worked for closed in September 2002, he joined the Army. Partridge’s cousin, Shelley Poole said she’ll especially miss the big hugs he gave her every time they met.

“He always has a smile on his face,” she said. “The emotions run real high and then drop real low reminiscing about him.”

He is survived by his wife, Rhonda, and two daughters: Kelsee, 11, and Kymberlee, 9.

“We can always remember the good things,” said friend Michael Williams.

“I can’t remember a bad one.”