Gainesville Sun -- STARKE - A member of the Bradford High School class of 2002 died in combat in Afghanistan over the weekend. U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Bryan D. Berky, 25, of Melrose, died Saturday in an apparent ambush staged by insurgents near Bala Baluk in the western province of Farah, according to U.S. Air Force officials.

Berky grew up in Starke and enlisted a year after graduating from high school. He was identified as an explosive ordnance disposal operator assigned to the 28th Civil Engineer Squadron of the 28th Bomb Wing, which is based in South Dakota at Ellsworth Air Force Base.

According to The Associated Press, Berky was one of three U.S. troops and seven Afghan troops killed in the ambush.

Bradford County officials said Berky was the son of Sonya and William Berky, of Melrose, and the husband of another member of his high school class, the former Erin Williams. Bryan and Erin Berky were married on July 25, 2003, shortly before he joined the Air Force. They became parents for the first time when their son, Harrison, was born on Dec. 18.

County records show that although the Berkys were living in South Dakota, they retained their ties to Bradford County by maintaining their voter registration there.

In the Dec. 16, 2008, edition of the Air Force Times, Berky was quoted as saying he loved his work protecting people and property from unexploded bombs. "I get back and feel like I contributed because I can immediately see the end result of my work," Berky told the military paper. He also acknowledged the danger involved in the work he was doing.

"A lot of terrorists are gunning for EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) operators because they know we're capable of disarming their main weapons," he was quoted as saying.

Berky was considered an elite member of the military's bomb squads because of his ability and experience, according to the Air Force Times. He had already served in Kuwait and Afghanistan when he was again sent to Afghanistan with Army forces this year to serve a six-month deployment. He was five months into his tour of duty.

Berky's brother, Jeremy Berky, used his MySpace page to honor his brother by posting a message that said: "To my hero and brother, Bryan Berky. 03/22/1984 - 09/12/2009," and noted that the family was heading to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware for a ceremony.

None of Berky's immediate family members could be contacted on Monday.

As Berky's survivors grieve and plan for his funeral, others who knew him while he was growing up in North Florida recalled him as someone who loved music, fun and pranks.

"No matter what was going on, we could always count on him to bring a smile to anyone's face with a joke or something funny he would say," said Jaime Lyn Register, another member of the class of 2002. "It was like we could count on him to provide a light moment in the most serious of situations."

Former classmate John Moore was a co-anchor with Berky on Bradford High's morning news show.

"He was really a charismatic person who got away with quite a bit," Moore said. "We were taking a video recording class together and he would take the camera and jump right into the middle of another class and interrupt the lessons and tell the teacher we needed to do it for our video class."

Moore was among the classmates who occasionally held jam sessions at Berky's house, where Berky played guitar, usually preferring punk rock to other music genres.

Danielle (Johnson) Byerly, another member of the class of 2002, said those jam sessions in Bradford County were a precursor of Berky's band while he was stationed in Japan.

"He called that band 'my friend the artery' and he really enjoyed that," Byerly said. "He and I talked over the Internet, and the last time I talked to him - about a week ago - he told me that he was due home in like nine or 10 days."

Byerly said Berky also told her he planned to make a career out of the military.

Berky's former high school biology and anatomy teacher, Christie Torode, said she and others in the Bradford County area are waiting to hear about when services will be held for him locally, and she predicted there would be a large turnout.

"He was always very funny, always a good student with a smile on his face," Torode said. She was not surprised to hear that Berky became a detonation specialist.

"He was good at paying attention to detail, but he didn't like to sit still for too long," Torode said.