AVON LAKE — Capt. Michael Medders Jr., the son of Elyria Police Chief Michael Medders and a former Avon Lake High School football star, was killed while in Iraq.

The details surrounding the death of the 2001 Avon Lake graduate still haven’t been released by the U.S. Department of Defense, but Elyria police Capt. Daniel Jaykel said the Elyria Police Department learned of Medders’ death Thursday and is reeling from the loss.

“It’s like part of our family dying,” he said. “Our deepest sympathies go out to Chief Medders, his wife and their family for the loss of their son. It hits home so hard, we’re almost in a daze here because of it.”

Medders Jr. played varsity football for Avon Lake High School and was named to the All-Ohio first-team before moving on to play at Walsh University of North Canton.

His father, who declined to comment for this story, had said in May that his son was so determined to join the military following the Sept. 11 attacks that the family had to convince him to stay in school and get his degree.

Medders Jr. transferred to Bowling Green State University, where he majored in business and communications before graduating in 2005, and then entered the U.S. Army.

Medders Jr. served with the U.S. Army’s 2nd Squadron 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment based out of Fort Hood, Texas.

In May, as a 26-year-old Army lieutenant, he suffered a concussion when a roadside bomb exploded near  the vehicle in which he was riding.

Elyria Mayor Bill Grace said Thursday he knew Medders Jr. from his dealings with his father and will always remember how the chief spoke so fondly of his only son.

“The chief was very proud of his son, his academic and athletic accomplishments and his willingness to serve his country,” Grace said. “He was a bright young man with a promising future. I’m sad for the chief’s loss and that of the entire Medders family.”

Several staff members at Avon Lake High School were so saddened upon hearing of Medders’ death that they asked to go home, said Avon Lake Superintendent Robert Scott, who arrived at the district shortly after Medders graduated in 2001.

“Every one of our staff who knew him said he was just a great kid,” Scott said. “It’s hitting them pretty hard. It’s such a tragedy.”

Mari Beth Becker, a former neighbor of the Medders family now living in Illinois, used to drive Medders Jr. to and from school along with her daughter Ryan. She said Thursday that she was devastated when she heard he’d been killed.

“He was an awesome, awesome young man,” she said. “He was very respectful and had a great sense of humor. I never heard him say an unkind word — it’s very heartbreaking. I feel so bad for his family.”

Medders Jr. is the seventh soldier from Lorain County to have been killed during the war in Iraq, and the first from Avon Lake.

Avon Lake Mayor Karl Zuber said the city is in a state of mourning.

“Our young men and women are making the ultimate sacrifice so we can live here in freedom,” he said. “There’s no way we can ever repay that. We just have to keep their families and friends in our thoughts and prayers.”

Contact Stephen Szucs at 329-7129 or sszucs@chroniclet.com.

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