Christopher Conrad Curtis

It is with deep sorrow we announce that Christopher Conrad Curtis, (Chris) of Phoenix, AZ and formerly of Ft. Bragg, NC and Pekin, IL, our beloved son, brother, grandson, great-grandson, uncle, nephew and friend passed suddenly on Saturday, August 10th 2019 in Tempe, AZ. Although only 27 at the time of his death, Chris affected many people in his lifetime. He was true and loyal to his country, friends & family and always ready with a smile or a helping hand when needed. From an early age he became known as the kid with an instant smile no matter what. He loved life, his family and had a special place in his heart for all animals. He is the youngest son of 2 beloved children to Bart and Maria (Curtis) Eertmoed of Phoenix, AZ (formerly Pekin, IL). Besides his parents, Chris leaves behind a very long list of family and friends including his brother and sister in law, Joe and Nicole (Straker) Curtis and his nephew Ashton of Washington, IL, his maternal Great Grandparents Ken & Lory Ellerbrock of Phoenix, AZ, his maternal Grandmother and Grandfather Arlene & Bill Baker of Tucson, AZ, his paternal Grandmother and Grandfather Joye & Robert Simons of Pekin IL, his paternal Grandfather Lloyd Eertmoed of Pekin, IL, his Grandmother Joyce Curtis of Odebolt, IA, his Aunts; Felicia (Curtis) Majewski of Kansas City, KS & Theresa (Curtis) Cutting of Eureka, MO, his Godmother Sherrie (Heirman) Somers of Streetman, TX, his lifelong best friend Branden (Nicole) White of Pekin, IL and his girlfriend Makaila Brunson of Peoria, IL. Many other loving family members and friends from all corners of the world have also been left behind and deeply miss his presence. Chris was preceded in death by his maternal Grandfather, Vietnam Veteran (Navy) Terry (Joyce) Curtis of Tremont, IL and his paternal Grandparents. Chris was very involved in sports and his community. Growing up he played in the Junior Football League (JFL), Little League Baseball (Union Mission) and then on to football, wrestling, track and swimming in High School. He graduated from Pekin Community High School in 2010 and immediately joined the Army at 17 years old, leaving for Basic Training at Ft. Jackson in South Carolina shortly after his 18th birthday. Once he completed Basic Training, he finished Advanced Training at Ft. Gordon Georgia and then went on to Ft. Benning in Georgia where he successfully completed "jump school" to become his dream of being a Paratrooper known as Airborne. He was very proud to have later earned an additional set of foreign jump wings from a visiting jumpmaster from Italy. He had over 100 jumps to his record, jumping from carious aircraft including the C130 and Blackhawk helicopters. Chris was fearless and never hesitated to jump out of whatever perfectly good aircraft he was in despite many hard (and sometimes painfully embarrassing) landings. His motto in life was Carpe Diem. After jump school, Chris was then stationed at Ft. Bragg in North Carolina where he would spend the next 5 years in a SPEC OPS unit, reaching the rank of NCO Sergeant. He then moved to the 82nd Airborne unit where he spent the remaining time of service until receiving an honorable discharge in early 2018. e was a decorated and dedicated veteran with awards for leadership, marksmanship and loyalty along with earning several certifications in communications including Certified Ethical Hacker and Fiber Line Installation. He spent two deployments overseas to Qatar and Djibouti, Africa representing the country he loved. He was a 6th generation military, deeply committed and very proud to carry on the family tradition of serving his country. After leaving the Army he moved to Phoenix, AZ to be with his parents and go to college to continue his career path in IT Security. He attended Chandler-Gilbert Community College and South Mountain College and was currently enrolled for his remaining semester to earn his Associate's Degree at the time of his passing. Chris worked for Starbucks in Chandler, AZ and also as security for The Woody in Arcadia, AZ. Chris was working as an IT Security Analyst for Wells Fargo at the time of his passing. A memorial service will be held on Friday August 16th from 10 am to 1 pm at Samaritan Funeral Services in Phoenix, AZ. As a Veteran, The Honor Guard will present the rendering of Military Funeral Honors at 11 am. Chris was very invested in the well being of Veterans and would be honored for memorial contributions to be made to help Veterans in need. E pluribus Unum (Out of many, one)