Soldiers: Kirspel Was a Selfless Leader (VIDEO)

Bullets flew at U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Charles Dougherty and U.S. Army Sgt. Michael D. Kirspel Jr. as they sought refuge on a hill in Afghanistan in August. When the enemy fire grew more intense, Dougherty looked at Kirspel.

"You think today's the last day?" Dougherty said. No, Dougherty said Kirspel told him. They had too much food to look forward to when they returned to camp.

"That's when I knew we'll make it out of this one and I'll be cooking steaks tonight," Dougherty said.

Two months later, Kirspel, known to his military friends as Doughnut, with an improvised explosive device. On Saturday, about 30 men from his unit marched in Hopatcong's Memorial Day parade and watched as the borough honored Kirspel and

The men also shared their memories of Kirspel, a 23-year-old with "an old soul," U.S. Army First Sgt. Timothy Sokolowski said.

"I don't think fear was in his vocabulary," Dougherty said. "He was one of those guys who would make jokes and laugh when we were under fire and couldn't do anything about it."

The soldiers painted the picture of a man who was easygoing in the face of war, funny despite the seriousness of his job. They said he could talk for hours and on many subjects while guarding his troops, and that he went far beyond the basics when training young soldiers.

They also said he was the rare sergeant who said "thank you" after soldiers followed his orders and that his moniker came from his surname's similarity to the Krispie Kreme Doughnuts and Coffee chain.

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Terrance Rose, 27, of Ohio, and U.S. Army Specialist Tremayne Anglin, 23, of Florida, were in the vehicle when the IED, which ultimately killed Kirspel, exploded.

Rose said Kirspel was a selfless leader.

"He was just someone you always wanted on your side," said Rose, who knew Kirspel for three years. "He was a great leader. Always led from the front."

Kirspel was quick with a joke and made sure his soldiers came first, Anglin said.

"Before, he was someone I knew at work," said Anglin, who knew Kirspel for nine months. "But as deployment went on, I got to know he was a great guy, great solider. Very caring. Cared about everybody around him. I'm glad I met him. I just feel sorry I didn't get to meet him earlier so we could bond even more."

Anglin said just before Kirpsel's death, his unit—3rd Battalion, 6th Field Artillery, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division—felt invincible.

Kirpsel's death "was just so unreal to everybody," Anglin said. "We just didn't know how to handle it. We tried to put it in the back of our minds. We were in Afghanistan, we had a job to do. That's what he would have wanted. For us to do our job and finish our mission. But it didn't feel real. We just felt like he went home and was going to come back to us."

But Kirspel didn't return. So the borough honored Kirspel and Curtin on Saturday with a monument in Veterans Field. Senator Steven Oroho (R-24) was in attendance as Kirspel's family listened to The memorial service followed a parade that started at borough hall and finished at Veterans Field.

After the service, U.S. Army Specialist Luke Duignan, 19, of Pennsylvania said he was convinced he and another solider wouldn't have survived an IED attack "two times bigger than anything we had ever seen" in February if it wasn't for Kirspel.

Duignan, who received 15 screws and a metal plate in his left ankle after the explosion, said Kirspel taught him to stay calm under enemy fire.

"One of the things Sgt. Kirspel always stressed was keeping your head in the game," Duignan said. "Don't let your emotions get the best of you. The first thing I wanted to do was get out of the truck and get into another truck. I knew that truck was [totaled].

"But we were still getting shot at. But his words kept me in the truck, made me know that my guys are going to help me."