Winston-Salem, N.C. — Family and friends mourning a Winston-Salem native killed in Afighanistan say they also want to celebrate the way he lived his life.

Staff Sgt. Adam L. Dickmyer, 26, was killed Thursday by an improvised explosive device while on foot patrol near Kandahar, according to the Department of Defense.

"I was in disbelief," his father, David Dickmyer, of Winston-Salem, told WFMY News. "I just felt like I was robbed or something and was just shaking. It was very hard to believe. My one and only son."

Family friend Lanette Holmes remembered Dickmyer, who was married, as a kind man.

"You just couldn't meet him without being touched in some way," she said. "He had a really good heart."

The graduate of Carver High School in Winston-Salem always had his eyes on serving in the military, relatives said.

"He wanted to fight for his beliefs, and he wanted to make a difference," Holmes said. "He did that, and we couldn't want anymore for him."

Dickmyer served with the 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) based at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

Along with his father, Dickmyer is survived by his wife Melinda Dickmyer, of Arlington, Va., and mother, Stephanie Dickmyer, of New Port Richey, Fla.

He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.