Raymore remembers fallen soldier

People in Raymore, Sask. remember the times Cpl. David Braunstood inthe local school gymnasium to tell children about his career with the Canadian Forces.

On Thursday, hundreds of family members and friends attended his funeral in the same gym.

Braun was killed Aug. 22 while on patrol near downtown Kandahar when an insurgent bomber plowed an explosives-laden car into a Canadian convoy and detonated the bomb. Three other soldiers were injured.

Braun, who was with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry stationed in Shilo, Man., had been in Afghanistan for less than a month.

The death sent shock waves through the community of 620 that's located about an hour's drive north of Regina.

And there were tears shed Thursday as people watched a slidepresentation showing moments from Braun's life.

His mother Patty Braun said her son died doing a job he loved and something he believed in: He had dreamed of being a soldier since he was a boy. On Thursday, she recalled his final visit in July and said she had never seen him so relaxed and calm.

That's because he believed strongly in his role in Afghanistan, she said.

In the eulogy,Braun's best friend Terry Braman spoke of his mixed emotions. On one hand, he said, he felt a sense of great loss, but on the other, there was deep pride.

Braun is being buried in the Raymore Protestant cemetery where his father was buried years ago.