Benning soldier dies in Kuwait

South Carolina native was 'good man,' dad says

BY LILY GORDON

Staff Writer

Pfc. Joey T. Sams II was an older brother, a church-goer and a proud soldier.

Sams, 22, of Spartanburg, S.C., died Wednesday at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, of injuries sustained when he was pinned between two vehicles. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team at Fort Benning.

Sams was one of 3,800 soldiers deployed this month for a possible 12-month tour or longer in the Middle East.

Joey T. Sams Sr., of Spartanburg, said Thursday night he and his wife, Annie Laura Sams, were very proud of their son and supportive of his decision to join the Army about a year ago. The Samses received word of their son's death on Wednesday. They were told he had been in an accident and it was under investigation.

"We didn't really go into any detail," Joey Sams Sr. said.

After completing two years at Spartanburg Technical College, the younger Sams decided to enlist in the Army because he had aspirations of becoming an FBI agent and thought the experience would be invaluable. Basic training at Fort Benning was tough, Sams Sr. said, but his son made it through and actually had fun.

The last of the 3,800-soldier 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 3rd Infantry Division left for the Middle East early last week. On one of those planes was Pfc. Joey T. Sams II. The unit was to complete last-minute training in Kuwait before moving to the south of Baghdad.

The last conversation Joey Sams Sr. had with his son was just a few days before he died. The soldier spoke often with his family, including his three younger sisters.

"He was a good man," Sams Sr. said. "I was proud of him."