Hometown: Chandler, AZ
Branch: U.S. Army 
Unit: 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division
Military Honors: Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster
Date of Sacrifice: November 13, 2011 - KIA in Kandahar province, Afghanistan
Age: 38
Conflict: War in Afghanistan, 2001-2021

Bryant McCain grew up in Chandler, Arizona. It was no surprise to his family that Bryant enlisted in the U.S. Army shortly after graduation. Even as a young boy, he had dreamed of becoming a soldier.

A career Army man, McCain’s military service brought him to the 5th Maintenance Company, U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz in Kaiserslautern, Germany, then to Fort Hood near Killeen, Texas, to Arizona, and to Fort Bragg near Fayetteville, North Carolina.

SFC McCain’s father, Bob McCain, told the Arizona Republic, “He was totally, 100 percent in love with the military and his country. He felt what he was doing was needed.”

Before he enlisted, McCain met Leanne McKinney in December 1991, dancing at a country club. They were married in November of 1992, and would later welcome four children: Breanna, Ashlyn, Chloe, and Wyatt.

In 2000, SFC McCain was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based at Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks, Alaska. The family made their home in nearby North Pole, Alaska—a small town 12 miles southeast of Fort Wainwright.

In the Global War on Terrorism, the U.S. Army introduced the Stryker Brigade Combat Team (SBCT) as a new “medium-weight brigade” strategy for deploying anywhere in the world—rapidly and with lethal force. According to defense contractor, Rand Corporation, “light forces deploy rapidly, but lack staying power; heavy forces have immense power, but take too long to deploy…The Army goal is to make these [SBCT] brigades light enough to deploy anywhere in the world in 4 days.”

With North Pole and Fort Wainwright located on the banks of the Tanana River, Alaska was an ideal setting for SFC McCain, who was an avid hunter and fisherman. When not on military duty, he taught his children how to hunt and fish.

During his career, SFC McCain was deployed twice to Iraq—from August 2005 to November 2006, and again from September 2008 to September 2009. In his first deployment, he received a Purple Heart when he suffered minor injuries in a mortar attack.

In 2011, McCain’s Stryker Brigade Combat Team was deployed to Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. According to family, McCain intended to retire after his tour was complete—after 20 years of service—to spend more time with his family.

On November 13 of 2011, McCain was on a patrol in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated near his vehicle. Seven soldiers were wounded in the attack, and SFC McCain died from the injuries he sustained. He was 38 years old.

Sergeant First Class Johnathan Bryant McCain was laid to rest among fellow soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery (Section 60 Site 9862), across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.

Sources
Details and card photo submitted by Ms. Ashlyn McCain—SFC McCain’s Gold Star Daughter
Family information provided by Folds of Honor Foundation
Arizona Republic, November 16, 2011: GI killed in Afghanistan was preparing to retire
State of Arizona: Sergeant First Class Johnathan B. McCain - U.S. Army
The Patriot All-America: Soldier Honored: Johnathan B. McCain
National Gold Star Family Registry: SFC Johnathan Bryant McCain
Travis Manion Foundation: Johnathan McCain
City of North Pole, Alaska: Johnathan B. McCain
Burial Site: Find a Grave