Remembering Staff Sgt. Ryan Knauss, US Army, 23

Grandfather, Wayne Knauss, takes solace in knowing that he will meet up with his grandson in heaven. He said, “Before he was a soldier, Ryan was a Christian. And he died a Christian. We take great comfort in that.” Ryan Knauss, a native of Tennessee, was one of five grandchildren and the only Army soldier killed during a blast at the Kabul airport on August 26, 2021.

Col. Jeremy Mushtare said of Knauss on Twitter, “Ryan was the embodiment of an Army Special Operations forces soldier, a testament to the professionalism of the non-commissioned officer corps, and a steadfast husband and teammate. His loss is devasting to our formation and Army family.”

Knauss joined the Army in 2016 and had deployed to Afghanistan in 2017. Throughout his military career, he had received the Purple Heart, a Bronze Star, the Army Achievement Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, and the National Defense Service Medal. 

Ryan Knauss is survived by his wife, Alena, also 23. They met during their high school years and she instantly knew when she saw him that they would marry. They bought a home in 2019 near the Fort Bragg base in Pine Bluff, North Carolina, and were in the process of fixing it up. They put in a garden, a hothouse for plants in wintertime, and even had a chicken house. “He could have done whatever he wanted to, but he wanted to serve his country,” says his wife. She continues that even knowing the outcome, he would have deployed anyway. “If it had been only one person over there that needed him he would have been there […] because it was the ultimate sacrifice that he would give for his country.”  

Ryan and Alena were to celebrate their 5^th Wedding Anniversary on October 7th.