By TANGELA JOHNSON

Staff Writer

Staff Sgt. Nicholas Olivier, 26, died when a roadside bomb in Baghdad detonated while he was on foot patrol Feb. 23.

Olivier will always be a part of the lives of his friends Lance Hill, Brandon Reggio and Mark Scariano, mainly because of his giving attitude towards all who were around him.

Olivier was a Tech alumnus from Carencro, who graduated in winter of 2002 with a degree in electrical engineering.

His passing came less than a year after he and his wife, Angelle Olivier, were married, and he had many plans for his future after leaving, said Scariano, a junior business management and entrepreneurship, major.

"Right before he was killed, he had extended his contract [in Iraq]," Scariano said. "Olivier was the type of guy that stood up for what he believed in. He was there for everybody."

Scariano had been good friends with Olivier before his deployment, as was Reggio, a junior civil engineering major and member of Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity.

"He went active [in Pi Kappa Alpha] in the fall of 2002, and he was one of my pledge brothers," Reggio said.

He also said Olivier's personality was extremely gracious.

"He was one of the best guys I ever met in my life," Reggio said. "He would do anything for anyone."

Reggio also said Olivier had planned to attend Tech and earn his master's degree in electrical engineering.

Hill, a member of the fraternity and a junior biology major, said Olivier was a dedicated individual in all that he set out to do.

"I had known Nick for about six years," Hill said. "He was a roommate of one of my good friends."

Hill said he was a freshman in high school when he began socializing with Olivier, and they became good friends and attended social events together.

Hill said Olivier never let anything keep him, or the people he believed in, from achieving a goal.

"He was an outgoing guy and he believed in living life to the fullest," Hill said.

"He never did anything halfway. He either did it or he didn't do it at all. He always pushed us, pulled us and dragged us over whatever obstacle we came across."

Hill also said Olivier had always been committed to the duty of serving his country, a calling that he felt he was destined to follow.

"He had been in the army since 1999, and he died doing what he loved," Hill said.

He also said Olivier's character was to do all that he could for anyone in his path, especially in his service. Though he had plans for the future, Hill said he wanted to protect the country by any means necessary.

"He was a true blue American soldier," Hill said. "He was a hero."