Staff Sergeant Samuel Castle, 26, of Naples, Texas, was with the 327th Signal Battalion, 35th Signal Brigade, based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He was killed on May 11, 2005, in Al Asad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his convoy. He was reportedly traveling to visit his wife and younger brother, who were also serving in Iraq. He was on his second deployment.

SSG Castle was born on June 12, 1978, in Linden, Texas. He graduated from Hughes Springs High School in 1996 where he excelled in baseball & football. After attending Tyler Junior College, he entered the Army and intended to make military service his career
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Family and fellow veterans said SSG Castle personified what it was to be military: dedicated, patriotic, self-sacrificing. His grandfather remembered how much he loved sports – basketball, baseball and football. His mother said that she last heard from her son on Mother's Day. "He was pretty upbeat," she said. "He said, 'Mama don't worry about me. I'm coming home. I'm coming home.' But we never thought he'd be coming home this way."

SSG Castle is survived by his wife and two children, a son and daughter.