Shoemaker, 31, Sweet Springs, Mo., was killed May 24 when a roadside bomb exploded near the vehicle he was aboard in Baghdad, Iraq. He was assigned to the 1st Brigade Transition Team, which is attached to the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley.
Keith Shoemaker had talked to his son while he was on leave in North Carolina.
"He was enjoying time with his wife," he told the the AP. "They went out and did a second honeymoon kind of thing."
Shoemaker said they talked about the war and what it means to uphold duty in the military. Kevin Shoemaker, his brother, is also in the Army and is stationed at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.
"He was an American fighting soldier," Keith Shoemaker said. "He lived the Army and the Army way. He always placed the mission first and never accepted defeat."
At a memorial service at Fort Riley, Sgt. Jared Siegel remembered his time serving with Shoemaker.
"Staff Sgt. Shoemaker was a well-rounded NCO and highly proficient with all weapons and would lend his assistance to team members if they sometimes struggled," Siegel said. "He lived the Army values."
Shoemaker joined the Army in 1995 and attended basic training at Fort Sill, Okla. He completed advanced individual training while serving in the Army Reserves.
In August of 2000, he transferred to active duty military. He transferred to Fort Riley in August of 2006 and trained with the 2nd Battalion, 34th Armor Regiment as an advisor on a National Police Transition Team. His unit deployed in late January of 2007.
Awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Medal.
He is survived by his wife, April, and his parents, Keith and Donna Shoemaker.
