CLARKS GROVE (AP) &045; A Minnesota native was trying to save fellow soldiers when the helicopter he was piloting was shot down in Afghanistan, his family and Army officials said Saturday.

Warrant Officer Corey J. Goodnature, 35, of Clarks Grove, was one of 16 troops killed when their MH-47 Chinook helicopter was shot down Tuesday.

They were trying to rescue an elite U.S. military team that still remained missing in the mountains of Kunar province on Saturday. It was the deadliest single blow to American forces in Afghanistan who ousted the Taliban regime in 2001.

His parents, Don and Deb Goodnature, of Clarks Grove, said he was a quiet man dedicated to serving his country. Since childhood, they said, he lived up to the family name, carrying a gentle demeanor yet strong presence.

Goodnature and six others aboard were members of an elite helicopter crew known as the Night Stalkers, which flies special forces commandos behind enemy lines under cover of night. His parents said it was his fourth tour of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq.

&uot;He never made us feel like it was dangerous for him to be there, so we just took it for granted that he was going to be safe,&uot; Don Goodnature said.

Goodnature grew up in Clarks Grove. He was a 1988 graduate of Albert Lea High School and earned an associate’s degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1991. His parents said he always wanted a military career.

&uot;One thing about Corey &045; he never wavered,&uot; said Deb Goodnature, who last spoke with her son on Mother’s Day.

&uot;It’s just hard to think of life without him here with us,&uot; she said.

He is also survived by his wife, Lori Goodnature, of Savannah, Ga., and their two sons, Shea, 14, and Brennan, 12, of Fort Leavenworth, Kan.

Lori Goodnature issued a statement through the Army calling him &uot;a devoted husband, a loving father and a dedicated Night Stalker.

&uot;Corey was a hero,&uot; she said. &uot;He served his nation for 14 years, and spent seven of those doing what he particularly loved to do &045; flying with fellow Night Stalkers and supporting Special Operations forces. There is no question that Corey believed in what he was doing. He never doubted why he was there. Corey died doing something he deeply believed in.&uot;

Corey Goodnature was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) based at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Ga.

&uot;They call themselves ‘The Quiet Professionals.’ They did their job, and didn’t really talk about it,&uot; Don Goodnature said.

Funeral arrangements were pending. The bodies of the 16 soldiers were flown back to the United States on Saturday. The Army’s Special Operation Command said Goodnature was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Bronze Star, an Air Medal with Valor device and the Combat Action Badge.