REDMOND, Wash. - Sgt. James Daniel Riekena, 22, died Sunday, Jan. 14, 2007, while on patrol in Baghdad, Iraq,
when a roadside bomb exploded near the vehicle he was driving.
James, known to his family as J.D., was born in Missoula in 1984. He grew up there attending Paxson and Russell
elementary schools, playing T-ball, participating in Cub Scouts and spending time with his grandparents, relatives
and friends.
James moved with his family to Redmond in 1993 where he attended Audubon Elementary School, Redmond Junior
High and Redmond High, graduating in 2002. During that time James was very active in Scouting, attending the 1998
and 2000 National Order of the Arrow Conferences and the 2001 National Jamboree. He staffed at Camp Brinkley,
became a Vigil member of the Order of the Arrow in T'Kope Kwiskwis Lodge and attained the rank of Eagle Scout
with Redmond Boy Scout Troop 591.
After graduating from high school James moved to Post Falls, Idaho, where he joined the National Guard and became
a combat engineer specializing in finding and disarming land mines and bombs. James served his first tour in Iraq with
the 145th Brigade Support Battalion of Post Falls. Upon returning, James moved back to Redmond to be closer to his
family and friends.
James volunteered for a second assignment in Iraq with the Puerto Rico National Guard, which was short-staffed and
could use his Spanish language skills, developed while working at Acapulco Fresh in Redmond with his three brothers.
James cared deeply about his family and friends and could always be counted on for help. He loved the outdoors, his
dogs Bailey and Lucky, literature and writing, and he hoped to go to college and become an English teacher.
James would have turned 23 on Feb. 27.
He is survived by his mother Pat McCune; father John K. Riekena; brothers John W., Joe and Joshua Riekena, all of
Redmond; and his sister, Jaime Riekena of Missoula. Also surviving are his grandparents, Sharon and Jim Riekena of
Missoula.
Funeral services will be held at the Missoula Alliance Church, 100 Foss Court, on Tuesday, Jan. 23, at noon. Burial
will follow at Sunset Memorial Gardens in Missoula, with military honors.
The Whitesitt Funeral Home in Stevensville is in charge of arrangements.