A National Guard unit from Bismarck has paid a high price for freedom.

The 957th Multi-Role Bridge Company has had more soldiers die in combat than any National Guard unit in the country. Three soldiers from the 957th have been killed, each while driving in a convoy.

Staff Sgt. Kenneth Hendrickson, 41, of Bismarck, and Sgt. Keith Smette, 25, of Makoti, were killed Saturday north of the town of Fallujah when their convoy was hit by a roadside bomb. They were traveling with the 82nd Airborne Division.

Spc. Jon Fettig, 30, of Dickinson, died July 21 on a convoy to the Euphrates River, northwest of Baghdad. Rocket-propelled grenade fire hit Fettig's truck. His passenger, Sgt. Brandon Erickson, 22, of Bismarck, was injured.

The deaths have hit the 957th hard, North Dakota National Guard spokesman Rob Keller said.

"They are a very close unit," Keller said. "Their average age going over was 22. They're very, very young. But as someone said, they went over kids and they're coming back adults."

Keller said the North Dakota National Guard's 141st Engineer Combat Battalion, stationed in Fort Carson, Colo., held a memorial service for Hendrickson and Smette at 9 p.m. Sunday.

It was unknown when Hendrickson and Smette's bodies would arrive in North Dakota. Smette's younger brother, Robert, also is a member of the 957th. He is returning to the state on emergency leave.

Of the 44 National Guard soldiers killed in Iraq and Kuwait, 20 were slain in combat. Keller said the figures came from CNN.

(Reach Tony Spilde at 250-8260 or tspilde@ndonline.com.)