Robert Jason Gore loved his country.

He embodied what it meant to be an American soldier, friends said. The Nevada native’s free time was spent lifting weights and researching military tactics. When it was his turn to leave for Iraq, he went without flinching, and, after returning home, he chose to go to Iraq again.

“He was one of those guys that we knew if he encountered a dangerous situation, he would know what to do,” said Chad Lovig, Gore’s former co-worker.

Training, however, could not have prepared Gore to handle a helicopter crash.

Gore, 23, died Thursday when the civilian helicopter he was in was shot down by insurgents in Iraq. He is the first ISU student to die in the war in Iraq.

Gore was a sergeant with the Iowa National Guard 186th Military Police Company. He was performing a six-month tour of duty as a private security contractor for Blackwater USA when he died. Six of the 11 civilians killed in the attack were U.S. security guards.

The crash occurred while en route to Tikrit from Baghdad during a diplomatic security mission.

Friends said Gore will be remembered for his sense of humor, his friendly personality and his work ethic. Above these, however, Gore will be remembered for the passion with which he lived his life.

“When he set a goal, he didn’t not do it — it happened,” said Lovig, who is the security director at North Grand Mall.

Joe Hynek, graduate student in mechanical engineering, was Gore’s roommate in Fairchild House of Roberts Hall when Gore attended Iowa State. Hynek said Gore was a fun roommate who was always energetic and always had a smile.”We lifted weights together; he was always competitive,” Hynek said. “We would always work each other hard because we were always trying to beat each other — he always worked really hard.”

Hynek said Gore’s dream was to become a Green Beret.

“His whole being was to work toward getting that,” he said. “I respect him for doing what he liked to do — he just really lived his life like he wanted to.”

Andy Holtz, senior in mechanical engineering, lived on the same dorm floor as Gore and said he remembers him as “a nice guy who was always willing to help out.”

“He was pretty dedicated. Every day he had a routine laid out, and he followed it every day,” Holtz said.

Gore grew up in Nevada before transferring to St. John’s Northwestern Military Academy in Delafield, Wis., for his last years of high school. He graduated in 2000 and enlisted in the Iowa Army National Guard in June 2000 before starting at Iowa State, said Lt. Col. Gregory Hapgood, spokesman for the Iowa National Guard. He was a physics major at Iowa State and worked at North Grand Mall as a security guard. Gore planned to return to Iowa State before applying for the Green Berets.

He was deployed to Iraq in February 2003 and returned in May 2004. He was transferred to inactive status upon return and was hired with Blackwater USA, a civilian security company with which he returned to Iraq months later.

“I worried about him when he was there — it was such a relief that he came back safely the first time, and we were concerned about him going back,” said Nicole Peterson, marketing director for North Grand Mall. “I couldn’t always understand it, but he kind of had a mission and a vision for life of what he thought was the thing to do. A lot of kids are still trying to figure out who they want to be. They’re confused, but he was a very moral kid.”

Hynek said Gore would e-mail that he enjoyed his work, but he did understand the reality of war.

“He had a close call — something exploded near their convoy of Humvees,” he said. “He said it was pretty scary, but he was fine — he liked the job.”

Gore kept in contact with several mall employees as well, Peterson said. “He was somebody you would not forget — he had a uniqueness about him,” she said. “He was one of those kids who made an impact, despite our thinking that his life was too short.”

Gore is survived by his mother, Sue Selby-Gore, and brother, Sean, both of Nevada; his father, Donald, of Sheboygan, Wis.; and grandparents Bill and Karen Selby of Nevada and Donald and Jackie Gore of Sheboygan, Wis. Funeral arrangements are pending, Hapgood said. Gore’s family members declined to comment for this article.

“It is a tremendous loss of a young person — so much to give and so much to live for, and he was so full of life,” Peterson said.

His dedication to military duty and honor were Gore’s defining characteristics throughout his life.

“He died doing something that he loved to do,” Lovig said.