The scene has been played out 129 times before at Kandahar Airfield.
In East Hawkesbury, the news did not take long to arrive that Pte. Patrick Lormand, 21, had been killed Sunday when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device southwest of Kandahar City.
"It takes your breath away, because you never realize, you watch it happen elsewhere but you never realize until it hits home," said family friend Robert Kirby.
"At 21 years old, to pack your bags and go to Afghanistan, it takes a man to do that and the community respects that."
Lormand grew up in the village of Chute-�-Blondeau and graduated from a Hawkesbury high school three years ago. Teachers remembered him as a model student who was well-liked by everyone.
Kirby said Lormand's parents were proud of their son.
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Vanessa Lee
