KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) _ A U.S. Army chaplain says it was an honor to serve as pastor to his assistant, Staff Sgt. Christopher Stout, who was killed last month in Afghanistan.

Capt. Ludovic Foyou  says the 34-year-old Stout was the first chaplain’s assistant to die in combat in 40 years.

The Army says Stout was killed in action while repelling an insurgent attack on an Afghan police compound in Kandahar. He’s survived by his wife and children.

Capt. Foyou offered his condolences, and recalled that he and Stout sometimes prayed together as they ministered to troops in the

82nd Airborne Division.