Sgt. Anthony A. Paci was a dedicated soldier, a veteran of two wars and a lover of fast cars.

But, friends said, above all things Paci was proud to be the father of three children and shared his dreams of a big family.

“He was always happy when he was talking about his children,” said Paci’s friend, Spc. Eric Tapia. “Even though Sgt. Paci just had a third child in November, he always spoke of having one more so the Paci family could be complete.”

But the war in Afghanistan intervened. Paci, 30-year-old Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier, died March 4 during a vehicle rollover in Gereshk, Helmand province. His family told the Washington Post the Rockville, Md., native was riding in a hatch of a Stryker when he yelled for his driver to swerve to avoid hitting an oncoming passenger car.

The vehicle rolled, killing Paci and handing his 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment its 22nd casualty of the war.

Friends and comrades gathered at a memorial service Wednesday at Lewis-McChord to honor Paci, who is survived by his wife, Erica, and his children: 2½-year-old Judah, 1½-year-old Tallulah and 3-month-old Mila.

He met his wife during his 2005-06 deployment to Iraq and told friends leaving his family behind for his second combat tour was difficult. His commander, Lt. Col. Jonathan Neumann, said during a memorial service Friday at Forward Operating Base Frontenac in Afghanistan that Paci exemplified a professional soldier.

“The historic background of the ‘profession’ in ‘professional’ goes back to the earliest religious times, which means professing your or declaring your allegiance, your beliefs or your loyalties,” said Capt. Luke Bushatz, the battalion rear detachment commander who read Neumann’s eulogy Wednesday. “Those ideas directly represent Anthony Paci – a professional who swore an oath to protect his nation during a time of war, and backed up that declaration with combat service not once, but in two theaters of this conflict against global terrorism.”

Tapia – whose eulogy was read by Sgt. Scott MacKay – and chaplain Capt. Ronaldo Silva quoted from the Book of Ecclesiastes, which contains one of the most recognized passages of the Old Testament: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.”

Paci’s father, Leo Paci, approached the microphone after the service ended and delivered an impromptu message to the hundreds gathered at the chapel – a rare event at on-base memorial services.

He, too, echoed the Bible verse: “I was riding with my son, Marco, today and I told him, ‘There are always two things: the good and the bad. A time to cry, a time to laugh.’”

“So,” Leo Paci continued after a pause, “God is with us. And God bless you.”