University alumnus Brian Slavenas was a weightlifter who could bench more than 400 pounds. He threw discus in high school, loved milk, worked as a security guard at Kenney Gym and never bought anything without first looking it up in Consumer Reports.

1st Lt. Slavenas, an Army National Guard pilot, died when his helicopter was shot down in Iraq on Sunday.

The 30-year-old was one of 16 soldiers, part of the Chinook helicopter CH-47 battalion, killed when insurgents shot down the helicopter west of Baghdad. It was the deadliest strike against U.S. forces since the Iraq invasion.

Twenty-one others were injured.

"It's a strange feeling to try to accurately explain what he was like," said Slavenas' stepbrother Sam Brakefield. "He was a great guy, loved to travel and saved his money."

Brakefield said Slavenas was 6 feet, 5 inches tall and weighed nearly 230 pounds, but family members called him a "gentle giant."

University student Ed Naines belonged to Slavenas' company — 106 Aviation F. Naines was on leave in Urbana when he heard the news of his fellow guardsman's death.

"He was a really strong guy — huge — probably one of the strongest guys in our company," Naines said of Slavenas. "But he wasn't aggressive at all — very shy, a big shy guy — that was him."

The 106 Aviation F Company is a group of close to 120 guardsmen from Iowa and Illinois who transport personnel and heavy equipment, said Illinois National Guard spokeswoman Lt. Colonel Alicia Tate-Nadeau. Four soldiers from the Iowa National Guard have been injured since the beginning of the conflict with Iraq, but Slavenas was the first injury or casualty from the Illinois National Guard, she said.

After studying at the University off and on for seven years, Slavenas graduated in December 2002 with a degree in industrial engineering. Christi Slavenas said her stepson's natural interest in science led him to study engineering, but he also took piano lessons at the University.

"He loved to watch track and attend sports events — he had all kind of interests, but decided to go with helicopters in the end," she said.

A 1990 graduate of DeKalb High School, Slavenas first entered into active duty in the army in 1991 and served until 1995 when he transferred to the National Guard. He received his commission as an officer in 2000 and went on to train at the University as a pilot.

Bill Jones, assistant aviation education specialist for the institute, said Slavenas was an outstanding pilot; he even received an A+ in Jones' course on Instrument Flying.

Slavenas joined the National Guard unit based out of the Greater Peoria Airport with some friends from the aviation institute, including Naines. Naines said they joined for a quick chance at flight experience, but didn't expect to serve overseas.

Tate-Nadeau said the unit was mobilized in February to go to Fort Campbell, Ky., before they were deployed to Iraq on April 15.

"The timing was that he'd just finished his degree and was getting ready to interview for engineering jobs," Christi Slavenas said about her stepson's deployment to Iraq. "He had mixed feelings. It was his duty, so he settled in, but he was still debating whether he should go to Florida (to serve at Ft. Lunker)."

Brakefield said Slavenas' body is being shipped back into the country this afternoon, and until it arrives safely, no dates will be set for memorial services.

"He was one of the most honest, genuine human beings I've ever met," Brakefield said.