Soldier With Cooperstown Ties
Killed In Friendly Fire Incident
COOPERSTOWN
Staff Sgt. Scott Studenmund, 24, of Pasadena, Calif., whose family ties to Cooperstown go back several generations, was one of five soldiers killed Monday in Afghanistan in a friendly fire incident.
Studenmund’s parents, Woody, an economics professor at Occidental University, and Jaynie Miller, former eHarmony CEO, summer on Otsego Lake, according to Martha McGowan, a family friend.
Neighbor Marlin James told CNN that Scott knew from a very early age that he wanted to serve his country and joined the Green Berets. “He worked him way up the ladder in rank,” said James. His parents “were so proud of him; we were all very proud of him.”
Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby said the five American troops were killed Monday “during a security operation in southern Afghanistan,” according to CBS News. Officials said an airstrike was called in after the unit was ambushed by the Taliban, CBS reported.