Minnesota soldier killed in Iran war was supposed to come home in days

A soldier from Minnesota who was killed Sunday when a drone hit a command center in Kuwait was just days away from returning home to her husband and two children.

Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, was one of six soldiers killed in the attack. All were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command, which provides food, fuel, water and ammunition, transport equipment and supplies.

“She was almost home,” her husband, Joey Amor, told The Associated Press from their home 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 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.

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

During that conversation, he said Nicole 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.

Amor’s awards and decorations include the Army Commendation Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Army Reserve Component Achievement Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Service Medal, NCO Professional Development Ribbon, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, and the Armed Forces Reserve Medal with “M” Device.

Community reaction

The City of White Bear Lake requested flags be flown at half‑staff as residents mourn Amor; community members described the city as tight‑knit and deeply shaken by the news.

“It’s so sad,” said Carey Bell of White Bear Lake. “You see some people, and you get a tear in your eye when you talk about it.”

Michael Fournelle said the loss hit home. “I’m very, very sorry for her family’s loss,” he said.

Air Force veteran Paul Zahradka, wearing a “Remember Everyone Deployed”(RED) hat, said he understands the sacrifice Amor and the other soldiers made. “I think that it’s really sad,” he said. “But that’s what they got into, and they paid the ultimate sacrifice for it.”

White Bear Lake Mayor Mary Nicklawske said she has spoken with Amor’s husband and is to give the family and the community time and space to grieve.

“Our community is deeply saddened by the loss of Sergeant 1st Class Nicole Amor, who gave her life in service to our nation. 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. 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,” Nicklawske said in a statement.

At a Pentagon briefing, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine read her name aloud and said, “To the families of our fallen we grieve with you today, and we look forward to welcoming your family members home at Dover in the coming days.”