Sgt. Zachary Tellier, a 1998 AU graduate, was killed by enemy fire in Firebase Wilderness, Afghanistan, Sept. 29, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Cape Cod Times.
Tellier, 31, had served in Afghanistan since January with his unit - the Fourth Squadron, 73rd Calvary Regiment, Fourth Brigade Combat Team of the 82nd Airborne Division, according to the Concord (N.H.) Monitor.
Tellier received serious burns to his hands in April after pulling two of his friends from their Humvee after it exploded. Following the incident, he spent two weeks recovering at Baghram Air Force Base Hospital in Afghanistan. During his time in the Army, Tellier received multiple awards for his actions, including two Bronze Stars, including one with valor; two Purple Hearts and other awards.
During his time at AU, Tellier was an active member of the university's Rugby Club and eventually became the club's president, according to the Cape Cod Times.
Tellier was a center for the club team, based on information collected from the Washington Research Library Consortium's Student Newspaper Collection, which contains Internet archives of all issues of The Eagle from between 1925 and 1996.
Chris Rutyna, head coach for the rugby team, knew Tellier when he attended AU and played on the team with him.
During their time together at AU, Tellier had been interested in media production and foreign languages. For three summers during high school and college, he participated in a student-exchange program to Poland, where he helped make documentaries with Polish students, Rutyna said.
Tellier pursued a number of different careers following graduation, including carpentry. While they had talked infrequently in recent years, Tellier had told Rutyna he enjoyed his work in the Army.
"When Zach joined the Army, he really found his niche," he said.
Tellier married Sara Grace Martin on June 17, 2006. They moved to Charlotte, N.C., which was close to Fort Bragg, where Tellier was stationed at the time, according to the Cape Cod Times.
Rutyna said he met Tellier's family and the two men he rescued in April when he traveled up to Massachusetts last weekend.
"My first feeling is sadness for his wife and family," he said. "It's tragic to see someone struck down when that person is doing something that was so important to him."
Tellier's family held visiting hours on Friday night at Chapman, Cole & Gleason Funeral Home in Falmouth, Mass. Tellier's funeral occurred on Saturday morning, and he was buried at Massachusetts National Cemetery on Saturday afternoon, according to the Cape Cod Times.
