"Brian was a very amiable person. People liked him and liked to be around him. Very congenial towards other students and very respectful towards teachers," said Donna Isner, Linn's English teacher.

A member of the football team, coaches say Linn was hardworking and a team player.

"Brian was probably one of those kids you remember as one of the most coachable kids you ever had. He never questioned anything. He would do whatever you asked him to do," said Bob Smith, one of Linn's football coaches.

Before becoming a trooper, Brian Linn served more than a year in Iraq with the 201st National Guard unit out of Elkins.

"I called my son the other night. They had been in Iraq together when they left with the National Guard detachment. And he and I did the same thing: we thought of the good things and how glad we were that we had the opportunity to know him," Isner said.

Linn's football coach says he wasn't surprised when Linn decided to join the State Police.

"One of those kids who wanted to do the best he possibly could. And that's why I knew he'd be successful in the State Police because of the attitude he showed both on the football field and in the classroom," said Greg Hott, Linn's football coach and biology teacher.

And while his life was cut short, one teacher reminds us just how successful Linn was.

"He made something of himself. He had a goal in life and he fulfilled it. And that's all we can all ask to do in life," Isner said.

Visitation for Linn will be from 5 to 8pm Wednesday night at the Saint Brendan Catholic Church in Elkins.

A funeral with full military honors will be held at 11:30 Thursday morning at the National Guard Armory in Elkins.