Hometown: Weatherby Lake, MO
Branch: U.S. Army 
Unit: B Company, 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment
Military Honors: Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal, Army Commendation Medal (2 oak leaf clusters), Army Achievement Medal (oak leaf cluster)
Date of Sacrifice: June 14, 2011 - KIA in Paktika Province, Afghanistan
Age: 26
Conflict: War in Afghanistan, 2001-2021

Born on November 2, 1984, Jeremy Katzenberger enlisted in the U.S. Army as an infantryman in October of 2004, just before his 20th birthday.

As a high schooler in his hometown of Weatherby Lake, Missouri (on the outskirts of Kansas City) Katzenberger watched with the rest of the world as 19 terrorists from the Islamist extremist group al Qaeda attacked the United States on September 11, 2001.

His first Army assignment was to Fort Benning, Georgia, where he completed One Station Unit Training and the Basic Airborne Course. At Benning, he was chosen for the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program, and after graduation was assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment in April 2005.

In that same month, on April 30 of 2005, Katzenberger married Colleen Montgomery. The two became friends when they were 16, working as lifeguards, and started dating during their first year of college. Katzenberger attended the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, and Colleen was an hour away at William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri. The Katzenbergers began married life together in Savannah, Georgia, and later moved to nearby Richmond Hill in 2007.

For six years, SSG Katzenberger was part of the Army’s premier direct action raid force, and his 75th Ranger Regiment—based out of Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah—was continuously deployed. He would serve his country in eight combat tours—four in Iraq, four in Afghanistan.

In October of 2010, Katzenberger was able to return home early from his 7th deployment for the birth of his son, Everett. Colleen recounts, “While Jeremy was on that deployment, I had recorded him reading Oh, the Places You’ll Go—because there were studies done that babies hear voices in the womb and they would get familiar with voices. They put [Everett] on the incubator and he was mad. And Jeremy goes over there, and he just starts talking to him. He puts two fingers in Everett’s little hands…and Everett immediately just calmed. He knew his Dad! I think that’s the happiest I ever saw my husband.”

On his 8th combat tour, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, Staff Sergeant Katzenberger was serving as a squad leader in Paktika Province, Afghanistan. During combat operations on June 14, 2011, his squad encountered enemy insurgents and engaged in a heavy firefight. SSG Katzenberger was struck by enemy gunfire and died from his wounds. He was 26 years old.

“I wish the American people could truly understand the dedication and sacrifice that Staff Sgt. Jeremy Katzenberger made for his country,” 75th Ranger Regiment commander Col. Michael E. Kurilla told the Savannah Morning News. “Since early 2005, Jeremy has either been in combat or training for combat…Jeremy was the epitome of a Ranger squad leader; he is a hero to our Nation, the Army, and his family.”

SSG Jeremy A. Katzenberger is laid to rest among fellow soldiers at Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery (Section I, Site 258) in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Sources
Details and card photo submitted by Ms. Colleen Katzenberger—SSG Katzenberger’s Gold Star Wife
Folds of Honor presents the story of Colleen Katzenberger (Video)
Savannah Morning News, June 23, 2011: Richmond Hill Ranger killed in Afghanistan
Army Ranger Lead the Way Fund: SSG Jeremy Andrew Katzenberger
Rangers Remembered: SSG Jeremy Katzenberger
ARSOF History: SSG Jeremy A. Katzenberger
Together We Served: Katzenberger, Jeremy, SSG
Legacy.com: Jeremy Andrew Katzenberger
Burial Site: Find a Grave