Sgt. Dimitri Muscat died last week in Iraq doing exactly what he always wanted to do: serving his country.
“He always wanted to be in the Army, not just the military, but the Army,” said his grief-stricken father, Hugh Muscat of Aurora, on Tuesday. “He was a shy kid. But I think the Army gave him a sense of belonging to a group. He was very proud of it.”
Muscat, who celebrated his 21st birthday in January, was on his second tour in Iraq, this time with Fort Carson’s 4th Infantry Division, as a tank gunner.
The Army hasn’t told the family much about his death, but his father isn’t too worried about it. “They’ll tell us when the time is right,” he said.
Muscat’s family – his father; his mother, Ksenia; and his 19-year-old sister Katya – emigrated to the United States from Russia. While Muscat embraced his Russian heritage, he would have wanted to be remembered as an American first, his family said.
“We honor that,” said Hugh, 45, who spent four years in the U.S. Air Force. “He’s a hero to us, a tough guy. We always thought he would come home.”
Hugh and Ksenia have become American citizens. Dimitri was granted citizenship upon his death and was promoted to sergeant.
Katya Muscat dreams of joining the Air Force, a goal that may be put on hold now that she is the family’s only child. She’s studying physics and aviation technology and wants to be an astronaut.
“After we worked through our sibling rivalry, we became quite close,” she said of her brother. “He told me once he made sergeant, he would become a drill sergeant and come back to train me.”
Dimitri, like his father, was a talented mechanic, restoring a Nissan 300ZX, disassembling and rebuilding the engine with only the manual as his guide.
“He had a dream of opening his own mechanic’s garage,” Katya Muscat said.
The family has been inundated with flowers and visitors, including co-workers and the wife of a soldier in Dimitri’s unit who drove in from Byers.
The family responded to the outpouring of goodwill by sending “care packages” to Muscat’s unit. “We would like to keep supporting his unit … until they return in December,” Katya Muscat said.
“He was a great son,” said Ksenia Muscat, her eyes filling with tears. “He always thought of gifts, of giving to others, from his heart. I’m beginning to feel guilty now, that I didn’t spend enough time with him.”
Staff writer Mike McPhee can be reached at 303-820-1409 or mmcphee@denverpost.com.
