POWAY -- A Poway man who was scheduled to marry his girlfriend this fall was one of 14 Army soldiers killed in a helicopter crash in Iraq earlier this week.

Staff Sgt. Jason Paton, 25, died Wednesday when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed in northern Iraq. The military said it appeared the aircraft was lost due to mechanical problems. There were no survivors.

Paton was born in Chula Vista and grew up in Poway, stepfather Jim Valenzuela said Friday evening. He attended Meadowbrook Middle School and Poway High, and graduated in 2000, Valenzuela said. After taking a few classes at Palomar College, he came home one day from a morning of surfing and told his family he'd joined the Army.

The airborne ranger died just three months shy of his wedding day, his stepfather said. He proposed to his fiancee, who was a starting catcher for the UCSD softball team, over the stadium's public address system.

"They were planning to go to Georgia," said Valenzuela, who added that his stepson had re-enlisted before he died. "He was going to be a ranger trainer and she was planning to coach softball there."

Paton was scheduled to return around his birthday this July, his stepfather said, but his unit's tour was extended by an order from President Bush. When he was killed, he was three weeks away from turning in his weapons and getting ready to return to the States, Valenzuela said.

Services are not yet planned for Paton, whose remains will take several days to reach the U.S.

At least 3,722 U.S. service members have died in Iraq, according to the Pentagon.