Krueger and several of the other 12 victims of the Fort Hood shooting rampage were set to be mourned at funerals across the country Saturday.
On Friday, hundreds packed into the Kiel High School gymnasium for a visitation for Krueger, 29, who was remembered as a determined young woman who signed up for the U.S. Army Reserves after the 2001 terrorist attacks.
"I'm a true believer that she will see Osama in, in the end," said Geneva Isely, 57.
"We know what happened, but we don't know why it happened," Isely said. "To give her all the way she did
- and on United States soil. Just unbelievable."
Krueger, who was studying psychology at University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, was recalled as a mental health specialist who wanted to help soldiers cope with combat stress. She was an athlete who loved playing sports and shooting pool. And she was a partygoer who sang karaoke and belted out songs by rapper Eminem.
"Her smile would light up any room, her energy would envelope all of those around her," her parents, Jeri and David Krueger, said in a statement. "It is that smile and that energy that keeps us going throughout this difficult time."
She was to be buried in a private service.
Funerals also were planned Saturday for Pfc. Aaron Thomas Nemelka, 19, of West Jordan, Utah; Staff Sgt. Justin M. DeCrow, 32, an Indiana native who lived in Evans, Ga., with his wife and daughter; Capt. John Gaffaney, 56, a psychiatric nurse who worked for San Diego County, Calif.; Spc. Jason Dean Hunt, 22, of Frederick, Okla.; and Pfc. Michael Pearson, 22, of Bolingbrook, Ill.
Utah's congressional delegation, governor and the president of the Mormon church were among those expected to attend services for Nemelka, an Eagle Scout who carried on a family tradition by joining the Army a little more than a year ago.
"Aaron was a man of few words but deep feelings and a gentle disposition," according to an obituary in Salt Lake City newspapers. "His beautiful smile and cheerful, fun-loving personality endeared him to his many friends and family members."
