Soldier From Inverness Dies In Blast

By CHRIS ECHEGARAY The Tampa Tribune

Published: Jun 7, 2007

Kerri Surber of Inverness last spoke to her son, Sgt. Robert Surber, when he called home on his sister Jennifer's birthday, May 26.

"He was very tired from being on patrol," Kerri Surber said. "He wanted to wish her a happy birthday before he went to bed. He was a wonderful young man. We were all so proud of him."

Robert Surber, 24, died Sunday in Thania, Iraq, after a bomb exploded near his vehicle. He was in the 1st Battalion, 37th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division Stryker Brigade Combat Team based in Fort Lewis, Wash. Three soldiers in Surber's unit also were killed.

Surber was on his second tour in Iraq. He was supposed to return home at the end of May, but the military extended his tour by four months, his mother said. Surber was home on leave in April.

"He just wanted to be normal," Kerri Surber said. "He'd change his clothes four or five times a day. He just wanted to wear something different."

Robert Surber was born in Inverness and graduated from Citrus High School, his mother said. He enlisted in January 2002 and went to Iraq in June 2006, the Army said.

When his unit was at Fort Lewis, Surber liked to snowboard. He also liked going to concerts and to watch sports, his mother said.

"All the stuff that guys like to do," she said. "He didn't like too much drama. We're just overwhelmed right now."