Gladwin High Graduate Killed in Iraq

On May 7th, I was sad to find out that the brother of one of my fellow real estate agents (Gretchen Lang), at Kehoe Realty, lost her brother in Iraq, Sunday May 6th. It has been a worry of hers that this was a possibility... and unfortunately, it became reality.

Please take a moment of silence in remembrance and the sacrifice that was given by this soldier for his country.

Visitation will take place at 4pm on Monday May 14th at the Gladwin High School, followed by the service at 6pm on the same day. Bobby will be flown back to Minnesota to be buried with full military honors in the Fort Snelling National Cemetery.

Article as written on WSBT South Bend:

A Minneapolis soldier who graduated from high school in Gladwin and was just three months into his tour in Iraq was killed when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle, the military said.

Army Spc. Robert J. Dixon, 27, died May 6 in Baghdad, the Defense Department said Wednesday. He was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division at Fort Riley, Kan.

Dixon was born in Portland, Ore., but moved to Gladwin in 1992, said Irene Dixon, who said she and her husband Daniel were Robert Dixon's legal guardians. In high school, Robert was a running back for the football team, set the school record in the 100-meter dash and also wrestled, his mother said.

"He especially enjoyed family activities," Irene Dixon told The Associated Press on Thursday. "We did a lot of family activities. He hunted, he paintballed, he snowboarded. We went camping, snowmobiling.

"If you ever knew Bobby, you'd love him. Every time we got a report from a teacher it couldn't have been any better. We got a call from a commander who said everybody there (in Iraq) loved him."

After graduating from high school, Dixon attended Olivet College for a year and later was briefly enrolled at Northwood University in Midland.

Dixon joined the Army in the summer of 2005, shortly after he moved to Minneapolis in search of work, his mother said.

"He wanted to further his education, and he always had a desire to be in the Army," she said. "He had planned to make it his career."

Dixon said she last heard from her son last Friday, when he called during a funeral for her uncle to express his condolences.

Robert Dixon is survived by his wife of 1½ years, Rusty Rose-Dixon, and two children. Funeral arrangements were incomplete but were likely to take place at the Gladwin High School gymnasium.

"I can't even convey to you how we're going to miss not having him here," his mother said. "But I also know that he is a Christian and he is with the Lord now."