REDMOND, Ore. - A community memorial service for Pfc. Thomas Tucker of Madras, one of two soldiers brutally murdered in Iraq, will be held in Redmond on Saturday, July 1.

Tucker, along with Pfc. Kristian Menchaca of Texas, disappeared last Friday after a firefight with insurgents at a canal crossing checkpoint in Iraq.

Troops stationed a short distance away heard an explosion and small arms fire. When they arrived, they found one soldier dead and Tucker and Menchaca missing.

The soldiers' bodies, which showed signs of torture, were found three days later, booby-trapped near an electrical plant just three miles from where they had been captured.

The U.S. military has launched an investigation to determine why their vehicle was the only one outside a fortified Army camp.

As for the memorial service, it is scheduled to be held Saturday, July 1 at the following location:

Deschutes County Fairgrounds Expo Center
3800 S.W. Airport Way
Redmond, Oregon

Flags At Half-Staff Monday, June 26

The memorial service at the Expo Center will be open to the public. A private internment, which is not open to the public, will follow at the Mt. Jefferson Memorial Park Cemetery in Madras.

A small group of people from the Westboro Baptist Church out of Topeka, Kansas have announced their plans to picket the funerals of both Tucker and Menchaca. Members of the church have picketed several soldier funerals in the past.

John Capell reports on the planned funeral protest

Candlelight Vigil

A group in Madras plans to hold a candlelight vigil in Tucker's memory.

The vigil is scheduled to be held Friday at 9 p.m. at Friendship Park.

Memorial Fund

A fund in Tucker's name has been established. If you would like to help, you can mail a check to the following address:

Columbia River Bank
The Bring Tommy Home Fund
P.O. Box 0
Madras, OR 97441

Money from the fund will help with travel expenses so family members who live outside of the Central Oregon area may attend Tucker's memorial service. Any excess funds will go toward a scholarship fund in Tucker's name.

How To Show Your Support

Cards and letters in show of support to the Tucker family can be sent to the following address:

The Tucker Family
c/o Public Affairs
Oregon Military Dept.
P.O. Box 14350
Salem, OR 97309-5047

(KATU Reporter Anita Kissee contributed to this report)