Stories and memories of a compassionate and fun-loving soldier who marched to the beat of his own drum filled a small church in Bellevue on Sunday.
Army Sgt. Lonnie Calvin Allen Jr., 26, died with three other soldiers May 18 in Baghdad when a roadside bomb struck his Humvee.
Allen, who went by Calvin, had been serving in Iraq since August with the 10th Mountain Division based at Fort Drum, N.Y. He was a 1998 graduate of Bellevue East High School, where he participated in basketball, football, track and wrestling.
Friends and relatives described Allen at Sunday's memorial service at Capehart Chapel as a charismatic and warm young man with a great sense of humor.
"Saying Calvin was a good kid is like saying the sky is blue," said longtime friend Justin Kral.
That was a sentiment shared by Air Force Capt. Bill Eckley, another friend. "He was a guy who your parents would say, 'Why can't you be more like Calvin?'"
Eckley said he remembers the last e-mail he received from Allen in Iraq, congratulating Eckley on his wife's pregnancy.
"He told me that when my son would grow up, he would teach him how to play basketball," Eckley said. "I told him that would be good, if he knew how to play basketball.
Many of those closest to Allen talked about his polite demeanor, his stubbornness and his affinity for Batman. Some touched on the circumstances of his death.
"Everyone might not understand what Lonnie Jr. died for," said family friend James Tate, who served in the Army from 1982 to 1989.
"But some of us have walked in this young man's shoes. We were lucky enough to come home."
Allen will be buried Tuesday at Arlington National Cemetery.
In his eulogy, the Rev. Herman Brown of Mount Carmel Baptist Church said Allen's life should be honored.
"Calvin is gone. He left tremendous memories. We're going to cherish and live with them," Brown said.
About 520 people made up the standing-room-only crowd at the service.
Outside, a dozen followers of Fred Phelps, the Kansas-based pastor who claims that U.S. soldiers are being killed in Iraq because they are fighting for a country that protects homosexuals, led a demonstration. They were forced to picket across the street from the church because a new state law requires protestors to stay 300 feet away from funerals.
Meanwhile, hundreds of leather-clad members with the Patriot Guard Riders, a national motorcycle group that helps provide security for military funerals, lined the walkway into the church holding American flags.
Inside, family members spoke solely of Allen, calling him an easygoing, kind-hearted soul. His brother said Allen never lost his love for video games, cartoons and comics.
"He was very much a kid at heart," said Nuru Allen, 27, of St. Louis.
Calvin Allen also was fiercely independent. That's why he chose to join the Army after two years at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colo., to the general surprise of his family.
"He was always his own person," Nuru Allen said. "I was the kind of person who kind of followed the crowd, and he wasn't like that. I really respected that."
"He was definitely stubborn, but he tried to do it right," said the fallen man's father, Lonnie Allen, a retired Air Force senior master sergeant who now works for the U.S. Postal Service.
"No one could dictate to him."
While serving in Germany, Allen met his wife, Birgit, a German native, at a club in Munich. They were married in New York in 2004.
Birgit Hoermann Allen, 23, moved to Bellevue to be closer to her husband's family when he was deployed to Iraq. She said she would always cherish her memories of their short time together.
"We didn't have that many common interests . . . But it didn't matter, because we loved each other. And that's all that mattered," she said.
"It meant so much to be together."
In addition to his wife, brother and father, Calvin Allen is survived by his mother, Sallie, a retired elementary school teacher.
Allen was the 34th member of the armed services with ties to Nebraska or western Iowa to be killed in Iraq and Afghanistan
Honor and Remember Nebraska Chapter is pleased to present this flag sponsored by Red Hat Society to the family of SGT Lonnie Calvin Allen. A second flag was also presented to Lonnie's Godfather in June 2011.
WASHINGTON – This afternoon, U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) spoke on the Senate floor as part of her initiative to honor Nebraskans who gave their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Today, Senator Fischer honored the life and service of Sergeant Lonnie "Calvin" Allen Jr., a native of Bellevue, Nebraska. Sergeant Allen was killed in Iraq after his Humvee was struck by an improvised explosive device.
Mr. President, I rise today to continue my tribute to Nebraska’s heroes: the current generation of men and women who lost their lives defending our freedom in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Each of these Nebraskans has a special story to tell.
Today, I will recall the life and service of Sergeant Lonnie "Calvin" Allen Jr., a native of Bellevue, Nebraska.
Calvin grew up in a military family. His father, Lonnie Allen Sr., was a Senior Master Sergeant in the Air Force. When Lonnie Sr. was assigned to Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue, both he and his wife Sallie thought they would only be there for a short time. However, they enjoyed "the good life" and soon after the birth of their two sons, Nuru and Calvin, they decided to stay.
As a young child, Calvin spent much of his time in the kitchen. His mother still talks about how Calvin learned to cook at the age of five.
Sallie has vivid memories of Calvin in the kitchen in the early mornings or on the weekends, experimenting with new receipts or dishes. There were times when she would still be in bed and Calvin would bring her food or a new dish to try. She said that he was always open to trying new things, whether it was in the kitchen or elsewhere. This also pertained to sports, where Calvin played basketball and football, ran track, and wrestled.
Calvin also had a caring attitude, which extended to church on Sundays. Calvin was widely known amongst the congregation at Mount Carmel Baptist Church in Bellevue. He often volunteered to be an usher and displayed his musical talent in the choir. Calvin had a personal and very open relationship with God, and he happily shared it with everyone he met.
Throughout his high-school years at Bellevue East, Calvin spent much of his time with friends and family. Sallie recalled many video-game parties and sleepovers at their house, which would end with many of Calvin’s friends sprawled out on the Allen living room floor.
Calvin was a member of a close-knit family who spent much of their time playing games together. Whether it was card games or board games, the competitive spirit would always come out in the Allen boys. They loved to compete.
After graduating from Bellevue East in 1998, Calvin enrolled at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colorado, to study criminal justice. He had long envisioned a career in law enforcement and thought this would be a good starting point for him to launch his career.
After completing two years at Northeastern, Calvin enrolled at Colorado State to finish his criminal justice degree. Soon after enrolling at Colorado State, however, he returned home to Bellevue. Calvin’s vehicle had been involved in a wreck, which left him without any means of transportation. Due to this, he enlisted in the Army as a way to pay for a new vehicle, while also pursuing his law enforcement career while serving his country. Sallie still laughs about the fact Calvin returned to Nebraska due to a wrecked car. Although many expected he'd follow in his dad's footsteps by enlisting in the Air Force, Sallie knew better: Calvin wanted to pave his own road in the Army.
Following his enlistment, Calvin soon shipped off to Fort Benning to complete his One Station Unit Training for the infantry. Shortly after graduation, he was assigned to a station in Germany. It was in Germany where Calvin met his wife, Birgit —a German Native. After dating for some time, Calvin was assigned to Fort Drum in New York, as part of the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division. Birgit came with him to New York, where they wed in 2004.
Shortly after their marriage, Calvin served in Iraq for the first time and Birgit moved to Bellevue to be closer to Calvin’s family while he was deployed. After a brief stint home, he deployed to Iraq for a second time. In August of 2005, Calvin was stationed near Baghdad.
During Sergeant Allen’s second deployment, patrols became increasingly dangerous. At the time, the Bagdad area experienced a large increase in suicide bombings and sectarian fighting. On May 18, 2006, while on patrol in Baghdad, Sergeant Allen’s Humvee was struck by an improvised explosive device, killing him and three other service members.
Sergeant Allen’s memorial service was held at the Capehart Chapel in Bellevue. Over five-hundred people attended the standing-room-only ceremony to pay their respects, including over two hundred Patriot Riders who lined up with American Flags. Calvin was laid to rest on May 30, 2006, in Arlington National Cemetery—the day after Memorial Day. Fellow friend and Air Force Capt. Bill Eckley talked about how Calvin was a man of honor.
Bellevue also honored him by naming a street after him and his high school established the Sgt. Lonnie Calvin Allen, Jr. Scholarship.
Sergeant Lonnie "Calvin" Allen, Jr. received the Bronze Star and Purple Heart, posthumously.
I join Nebraskans and Americans across our country in saluting his willingness, and his family’s sacrifice, to keep us free.
I am honored to tell his story.
Thank you, M. President. I yield.
March 15, 2018