A postcard that Donald N. Davis wrote to his wife Linda's coworkers arrived just hours after they got word of his death. In it, he thanked them for a care package of Kool-Aid, gum and snacks. Then he added a P.S.: "Take good care of Linda, she's one of a kind." Davis, 42, of Saginaw, Mich., died Aug. 24 when a tractor and a tanker trailer rolled over an embankment. He was based in Zanesville, Ohio. The father of two teenage girls, Davis had been in Iraq since late last year. "He was a very dedicated family man," his brother Alan Davis said. "Whatever it took to make kids happy, he did it." Davis came from a military family and enlisted after graduating from high school. His father, Bill Davis, is a veteran, as are many of his siblings. "We are a very patriotic family that believes in serving in the military," Alan Davis said. "We may not be the best Americans, but we believe we're good Americans."

— Associated Press