Douglas J. Riney

Sergeant Douglas J. Riney, 26, was assigned to Support Squadron, 3rd Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood Texas. He died October 19, 2016, after his squad encountered hostile enemy forces near Kabul, Afghanistan.

Riney graduated from Spoon River Valley High School and volunteered with the Fairview Fire Protection Unit in Illinois before he joined the Army in 2012. He was previously deployed to Afghanistan from July 2014 to February 2015 and again from June to October 2016.

Riney’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal (awarded posthumously), the Purple Heart Medal, Army Commendation Medal, four Army Achievement Medals, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and the Afghanistan Campaign Medal with three campaign stars, among several other military commendations.

He is survived by his wife, Kylie and children Elea and James.

The family received a mortgage-free home through the Tunnel to Towers Foundation’s Gold Star Family program in Farmington, Illinois on September 21, 2018.

PHOTOS