Staff Sergeant Bryan C. Black was born on August 3, 1982, and grew up in Puyallup, Washington, the younger son of Karen and Henry “Hank” Black, a retired Marine. His mother remembers a boy who teased his older brother, hated losing and taught himself whatever caught his interest. “He needs a challenge,” she said. “Always needed a challenge.”
Bryan learned chess in the fourth grade after watching his brother, Jason, win a tournament trophy. When Bryan entered a tournament and came home without one, he spent the summer studying obsessively with a magnetic board and two books. He and Jason became regulars at the Tacoma Chess Club, where the older players opened the doors and set up a fan whenever the Black boys came to play. A year later Bryan was dominating the state in his grade, and in 1994, at about 11, he finished second in his age group at the national finals. He wrestled in junior high, played the bassoon because it was strange-looking and difficult and once brought home a bird’s leg to study how its tendons worked, the beginning of his fascination with medicine. He graduated from Puyallup High School while earning an associate degree at the same time and finished a business degree at Central Washington University at age 20.
Bryan moved to Mammoth Lakes, California, where he taught skiing, worked construction and met his wife, Michelle. He also became a skilled stock trader and practiced mixed martial arts. Wanting a career reset and the physical challenge of the trenches, he enlisted in the Army in October 2009. He began Special Forces training in 2012, and in 2015, after completing the Special Forces Qualification Course and the Special Forces medical course, he joined Company A, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, as a Special Forces medical sergeant. His training also included the Special Operations Combat Medic Course, Ranger School and Arabic language training. He spoke Arabic and taught himself French and Hausa, a language widely spoken in Niger.
Bryan deployed to Afghanistan as a medical sergeant and then to Maradi, Niger, in 2016 and Ouallam, Niger, in 2017. On one mission he treated a civilian with a badly injured leg who could not afford a hospital; Bryan set up a surgical tent and repaired the torn tendon himself. He led a Bible study for his fellow soldiers while deployed and was rarely seen without a book or a cigar in hand.
On October 4, 2017, Bryan’s team and their Nigerien partners were returning from a reconnaissance patrol near the village of Tongo Tongo, close to the Mali border, when they were ambushed by a much larger force of Islamic State fighters. Bryan was killed along with Staff Sergeants Jeremiah Johnson and Dustin Wright and Sergeant La David Johnson. He was 35 years old. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal with “V” device for his valor on the ground that day. His other decorations include the Purple Heart, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal with “C” device, a second Army Commendation Medal, two Army Good Conduct Medals, the Niger Cross of Valor with Star, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Special Forces Tab, the Parachutist Badge and the Air Assault Badge.
At his memorial service in Fayetteville, his father summed up his son’s life: “Some people could, would, should. Other people do. Bryan did.” Bryan had chosen the music for that day long before, as deployed soldiers must: “Finnegan’s Wake,” a lively Irish tune and one last loving joke for a family without a drop of Irish blood. He is survived by his wife, Michelle; their sons, Ezekiel and Isaac; his parents, Karen and Henry Black; and his brother, Jason.
SSG Bryan Black was killed in Niger as a result of hostile fire. His detachment conducted a reconnaissance patrol along with host nation military forces near the Mali border when they were attacked by a militant group of 50 plus fighters.
3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne)
Sources
- Family-provided records on file with MVF: Bryan Black bio and USASOC biographical sketch
- The Seattle Times: Puyallup Green Beret killed in Niger once was a chess whiz and stock trader (Oct. 25, 2017)
- The News Tribune (Tacoma): In chess and in life, Puyallup soldier killed in Niger used his time well
- The New York Times Magazine: My husband was killed in Niger (Michelle Black, Dec. 21, 2018)
- Legacy.com / The News Tribune: Bryan Black obituary
