The funeral service for Sgt. Jonathan "Nathan" Gollnitz is being delayed by one week.
According to the Rev. Roger Eimers, the memorial service has been rescheduled for Oct. 13 at 2 p.m. at the First Baptist Church on Central Avenue in Dunkirk.
Sgt. Gollnitz, a Fre-donia native, was killed in Pul-E Alam, Afghanistan on Sept. 26 in a roadside bombing.
Village of Fredonia Mayor Stephen Keefe declared the week of Sept. 30-Oct. 7 as Jonathan Gollnitz week, and asks that all American flags be flown at half-mast.
According to the Department of Defense, Sgt. Gollnitz and Staff Sgt. Orion N. Sparks, 29, of Tucson, Ariz., died of injuries suffered when an insurgent wearing a suicide vest detonated the device near their patrol.
The two soldiers, supporting Operation Enduring Freedom, were assigned to the 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Schweinfurt, Germany.
Rev. Eimers said a military service is taking place in Texas, near where his uncle and aunt, Martin and Diane Kennedy, live. The military service must take place first, because that's where his headstone will be placed. The date and time of the service has not yet been set.
"His aunt and uncle were very close mentors to him, especially since he graduated high school," said Rev. Eimers. "He (Sgt. Gollnitz) requested it this way."
After the military service, the family will return to Western New York for a memorial service here.
