Sgt. Anthony A. Paci was a dedicated soldier, a veteran of two wars and a lover of fast cars. But, friends said, above all else Paci was proud to be the father of three children and shared his dreams of a big family. Then the war in Afghanistan intervened.

The latest Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier reported killed in Iraq overcame drug addiction in her teen years and later served in the Air Force and Army before dying from mortar fire on her first deployment.

The Iraqi prime minister’s coalition and its main secular rival both claimed to be ahead in the vote count Monday, a day after historic parliamentary elections that the top U.S. commander said would let all but 50,000 American troops come home by summer’s end.

American troops should be out of sight from polling places today as Iraqis elect a parliament for the second time since the fall of Saddam Hussein. But Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldiers are working behind the scenes throughout the country.

A Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier was killed Thursday when his vehicle rolled over in Afghanistan. Spc. Anthony A. Paci, 30, of Rockville, Md., died Thursday at Gereshk.

The Army’s chief of staff told lawmakers this week that a protective design change is coming for the Army’s Stryker vehicle, the signature carrier of local infantry fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

NASIR WA SALAM, Iraq – Junior Tupuola’s car roared down the California highway. The booze from that night’s party still pumped in his veins.

Sgt. Adam J. Ray entered the Army in a noncombat role but yearned for the long marches, the weaponry and the front-line missions. So in April 2008, Ray changed from hospital patient administration to the infantry. He left in July for Afghanistan with his Joint Base Lewis-McChord Stryker brigade. And on Feb. 9, a roadside bomb killed the 23-year-old Kentucky native.

ZAIDON, Iraq – To understand the roots of Islamic extremism in Iraq, you must first study this rural Sunni area of western Baghdad province. It was here, according to an American military report, that religious fundamentalism in Iraq began. Saddam Hussein’s government never could completely diffuse Zaidon. Nor could the American military or post-invasion government. But one company of Joint Base Lewis-McChord Stryker soldiers has the mission of trying to help the Iraqi army tame the area.

ZAIDON, Iraq – Sleeping bags and poncho liners provided little insulation as the temperature plunged below freezing.

Two young enlisted soldiers from Joint Base Lewis-McChord – both serving their first combat deployments – died this week in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Department of Defense announced Friday.

NEAR MARJAH, Afghanistan – U.S. and Afghan forces pushed Tuesday to the edge of the southern Afghan town of Marjah, poised to seize the major Taliban supply and drug-smuggling stronghold in hopes of building public support by providing aid and services once the insurgents are gone.

The kidnapping of a civilian contractor working for the American military in Iraq served as just the latest reminder of the danger of doing business in the country.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE GRIZZLY, Iraq – Sgt. Gary Bowman stared through the scope of an M-4 rifle. He lined up his enemy’s head in the crosshairs. He pulled the trigger. The target fell.

Spc. Kyle J. Wright was remembered Friday as a giving and courageous person who cracked jokes, pulled pranks and used a listening ear to support soldiers fighting beside him in Afghanistan.