The helicopter he was riding in crashed in a western Iraq
sandstorm
Nathan Alan Schubert, the story goes, was 4 years old when he
finished his bath one summer night. He grabbed a box of popsicles
and darted out to the curb. Before Mom knew what he was up to, he
was handing treats to neighbors and people passing by.
He wasn't just generous, he was darn quick.
Nate Schubert's fleet feet served his Cherokee Braves on the
football field where he starred returning kicks and punts for
touchdowns. His mother, Cheryl Winklepleck, couldn't catch him on
Super Bowl Sunday years ago when he secretly dashed outside and
knocked on the door as Ed McMahon was about to announce the winner
of that year's Publisher's Clearinghouse Sweepstakes.
"You could see the surprise on Mom's face," said Nathan's older
brother, Matt Schubert. "She jumped up and thought she'd won."
The prankster on the other side could barely contain his
laughter.
He so loved his family. And loved driving them bananas.
"One time I tackled him pretty hard in a family football game
and he hit me with the ball as I walked away," Matt said. "I turned
around and he had this small, mischievous grin on his face. He
could do about anything to me, and he knew it because he was so
much faster."
The annoying little brother used his speed on the basketball
court and baseball diamond where he chased loose balls and line
drives. For six straight summers, a Schubert patrolled left field
for the Braves. Matt wore No. 18 in his three seasons. When Nathan
earned the job as a sophomore, he took his older brother's number
for three more years. That is love.
The boy who moved so swiftly saw much of the world during his
three years with the U.S. Marine Corps. He quit college a month
after the attacks of Sept. 11 and was soon serving in helicopters
and boats in countries his family would never see.
"He had a big heart and wanted to help as many people as he
could," Matt said.
Nathan was killed one day shy of his 23rd birthday when his
helicopter crashed in western Iraq. Matt talked to him four days
earlier.
"Nate told me he had some unbelievable pictures he'd taken,"
Matt said. "He enjoyed being a Marine. He liked the fact they could
go all over the world. He liked adventure. That's what drew him to
it."
