Twenty-one-year-old Spec. Adam Patton, from Port Orchard, died in Afghanistan’s Kandahar provence on Thursday, one of six soldiers killed by a roadside bomb.

“He was just full of life,” said his mother, Sandy Kottre. “Nothing brought him down.”

Patton loved motocross, soccer and “hanging out with his buddies,” she said.

He also loved ROTC.

So, it didn’t surprise Kottre when he told her that he planned to join the army.

“He always talked about joining the service,” said Kottre. “He was very involved in the ROTC in highschool and Jr. High.”

His older brother had also joined the army, and he’s currently serving as a sergeant stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia, working with tanks.

Patton also left behind two sisters and a stepfather.

“He was very close to his sisters,” said Kottre. “He picked on them to no end and threatened to throw them off the deck, but if his sisters were hurt or needed something, he was there for them.”

Patton has also left many friends, Kottre said.

“He was a loving, caring and always treated everyone the same, regardless of whether you were his friend or someone he just met,” she said. “It doesn’t matter how much money you had or how little. You were equal in his eyes.”

Kottre said she’s still hasn’t gotten used to the idea that he’s gone.

“I’m still numb to the whole situation,” she said. “If I let my heart believe it, I’ll fall apart, because that’s when I’ll have to say goodbye, and I’m not ready to do that.”

The family has tentatively scheduled a closed-casket viewing for Friday, and a memorial service for Saturday.

Donations in Patton’s honor can be made to the ROTC in Port Orchard, Kottre said, adding that her son would probably love it if people donated to the local ROTC.