KILLINGLY, Conn. (AP) – It didn’t take long for word to spread through this small eastern Connecticut town Thursday that one of their own had died fighting in Iraq.

Army Spec. Christopher Hoskins, 21, became the 27th serviceman or civilian with Connecticut ties to die in Iraq or Afghanistan since March 2002, but he was Killingly’s first.

“Our hearts to out to his family,” Town Council Chairwoman Janice Thurlow said Thursday.

A 2001 graduate of Killingly High School, Hoskins enlisted in 2003 and recently signed up for another four years.

“He felt it was his responsibility and he very much wanted to go,” Kristin Mayo, 23, Hoskin’s sister said.

Army officials said Hoskins died Tuesday in Ramadi, Iraq, when his unit came under small arms fire. Another solider in Hoskins’ unit also was killed. Both soldiers were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.

Hoskins’ family was notified early Wednesday.

“He didn’t have to go, but he went,” his mother, Claudia Hoskins, told the Norwich Bulletin. “He stepped up to it. The military gave him direction. He felt like a man amongst men. He was very proud of his accomplishments.”

Gov. M. Jodi Rell ordered state of Connecticut flags to be flown at half-staff until sundown on the day of his funeral.

“The death of Spc. Hoskins reminds us once again that our brave military men and women continue to put their lives on the line for us each and every day,” Rell said. “Words cannot express the pride and gratitude we feel. They, like Spc. Hoskins, personify courage.”

Those who knew him said Hoskins was not one to shy away from challenges. His high school wrestling coach said Hoskins joined the team as a junior with no prior wrestling experience.

But the quiet young man worked his way into the starting lineup of a team that eventually won a conference championship, coach Rich Bowen said.

“He wasn’t real fiery. He just came to practice each day, probably didn’t say two or three words, if that,” Bowen said Thursday. “I think to him it was just a challenge. He was a very quiet kid, laid back.”

Hoskins was a member of the Army’s 2nd Infantry Division. He served as a driver for a Bradley fighting vehicle and driver and gunner on a Humvee. He was in Iraq for nearly one year.

“The local contribution of the Hoskins family in Killingly, and in eastern Connecticut, makes this loss especially hard,” said Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams, who represents the town. “The people who are fighting overseas, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan, are protecting all of us. Unfortunately, that is little consolation at a difficult time like this.”

Funeral arrangements were incomplete Thursday.

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Information from: Norwich Bulletin

AP-ES-06-23-05 1703EDT