Minnesotan killed in airstrike while serving in Kuwait was just days from returning home

Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor of White Bear Lake was among the U.S. Army Reserve soldiers killed on Sunday in Kuwait, during the U.S. military operation against Iran, the military announced on Tuesday.
Courtesy of US Army Reserve

Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor was just days away from returning home to her husband and two children in Minnesota when a drone strike at a command center in Kuwait killed her and five other U.S. service members.

“She was almost home,” her husband, Joey Amor, said from their home in White Bear Lake on Tuesday. “You don’t go to Kuwait thinking something’s going to happen, and for her to be one of the first — it hurts.”

Amor was one of five U.S. soldiers killed in the Iran war on Sunday and identified Tuesday by the Pentagon; one soldier hasn’t yet been publicly identified. The members of the Army Reserve worked in logistics and kept troops supplied with food and equipment.

They died just one day after the U.S. and Israel launched their military campaign against Iran. Iran responded by launching missiles and drones against Israel and several Gulf Arab states that host U.S. armed forces.

An undated photo provided by Joey Amor shows Nicole Amor (left) and Joey Amor of White Bear Lake. Nicole Amor was killed Sunday while serving with the U.S. military in Kuwait.
AP

Those killed also included Capt. Cody Khork, 35, of Winter Haven, Florida; Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Nebraska; and Sgt. Declan Coady, 20, of West Des Moines, lowa, who was posthumously promoted from specialist. Maj. Jeffrey O’Brien, 45, of Waukee, Iowa was also killed, according to a statement released by the U.S. Army Wednesday evening.

“These men and women all bravely volunteered to defend our country, and their sacrifice will never be forgotten,” Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll said.

All were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command, which handles logistics and supplies food, fuel, water, ammunition and transport equipment to other military units.

“Sadly, there will likely be more, before it ends. That’s the way it is,” President Donald Trump said of the deaths.

Nicole Amor, 39, was an avid gardener who enjoyed making salsa from the peppers and tomatoes in her garden with her son, a senior in high school. She also enjoyed rollerblading and bicycling with her fourth-grade daughter.

The military said Amor enlisted in the National Guard in 2005. She transferred to the Army Reserve in 2006, and had previously deployed to Kuwait and Iraq in 2019.

A week before the drone attack, Amor was moved off-base to a shipping container-style building that had no defenses, Joey Amor said.

“They were dispersing because they were in fear that the base they were on was going to get attacked and they felt it was safer in smaller groups in separate places,” he said.

He said she was working long shifts and that he last spoke to her about two hours before she was killed. He said she told him she had tripped and fallen and that they had been joking with each other about that. The fun messages stopped abruptly.

“She just never responded in the morning,” he said.

In a social media post Wednesday afternoon Joey Amor wrote, “Nicole was a rare and special light in this world, and she will be missed more than words can ever explain.”

In the tribute, he described Amor as “an amazing soldier” who was also “an amazing wife, mother and friend.” He said she had “a way of being everyone’s mother and best friend at the same time,” and was “strong, loving and real.”

Amor’s husband said the outpouring of support and shared memories from friends and loved ones has brought comfort in recent days. “The support, prayers and stories about Nicole have already meant more to us than I can possibly explain,” he wrote.

To honor her memory, he said the family plans to build a greenhouse, reflecting her love of gardening. “Nicole loved gardening. It was one of the places where she found peace and joy,” he wrote. Amor said the greenhouse will serve as “a living space that reflects the love, warmth and life she brought into this world.”

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz posted a statement saying the state is mourning the loss of Nicole Amor.

“She answered the call to serve and gave her life in service to our state and nation. Minnesotans are wrapping our arms around her loved ones,” Walz wrote.

The police department in White Bear Lake, where Amor lived, posted on social media that her “bravery and commitment to service represent the highest ideals of duty and sacrifice. Our entire community in White Bear Lake mourns this profound loss alongside those who knew and loved her.”

White Bear Lake Mayor Mary Nicklawske ordered flags in the city to be flown at half-staff in honor of Amor.

“As a devoted wife, mother and neighbor, her absence will be felt by all who knew her. We also recognize the immense sacrifice her family has made and will continue to make,” Nicklawske said in a statement Wednesday morning. “Her memory will be honored by our city and never forgotten. Our hearts go out to her loved ones during this unimaginably difficult time, and we stand ready to support them in the days ahead.”

The local VFW post is also ready to support the family however needed. Commander Gary Carlberg said White Bear Lake has an especially active VFW post and auxiliary — and he’s already hearing from members who want to do what they can to help Amor’s family.

“We’ve got a culture of being very supportive of funerals, families and things like that,” Carlberg said. “I have to keep everybody back — we’re on standby until we know what the casualty assistance officer asks us to do on behalf of the family.”

State Sen. Heather Gustafson, whose district includes White Bear Lake, said “this tragedy reminds us of the profound sacrifice made by all service members, their family, and loved ones. I extend my thoughts and condolences to her family and loved ones. We will honor her life by supporting her family, lifting them up in the days ahead, and never forgetting the cost paid in our name.”

One of the youngest in his class

Coady had just told his father last week that he had been recommended for a promotion from specialist to sergeant, a rank he received posthumously.

He was one of the youngest people in his class but seemed to impress his instructors, his father Andrew Coady said Tuesday.

“He was very good at what he did,” he said.

Coady trained as an information technology specialist with the Army Reserves and was studying cybersecurity at Drake University in Des Moines. He was taking online classes while in Kuwait and wanted to become an officer.

A calling to serve his country

Khork was very patriotic and drawn from a young age to serving the U.S., his family said in a statement Tuesday.

He enlisted in the Army Reserve and joined Florida Southern College’s ROTC program.

“That commitment helped shape the course of his life and reflected the deep sense of duty that was always at the core of who he was,” said his mother, Donna Burhans, father, James Khork, and stepmother, Stacey Khork, in a statement.

Khork also loved history and had a degree in political science.

A loving father and husband

Tietjens lived with his family in the Omaha suburb of Bellevue. He was married with a son, according to a Facebook page.

Tietjens earned a black belt in Philippine Combatives and taekwondo and was “an instructor who gave his time, discipline, and leadership to others,” the Philippine Martial Arts Alliance said in a Facebook post.

On the mat and as a soldier, “he carried the same values: honor, discipline, service, and commitment to others,” the organization said.