Pfc. Chance R. Phelps, U.S.M.C (KIA)

CHEYENNE -- A 19-year-old Marine originally from Dubois was killed Friday while battling insurgents in Iraq, his father said Saturday.

Pfc. Chance R. Phelps was shot in the head during fighting in Ramadi, west of Baghdad, according to his father, John Phelps. The family was notified early Saturday of his death.

Department of Defense officials would not confirm Phelps' death. No official announcement had been released by late Saturday, although confirmation could come sometime on Sunday.

Chance Phelps was deployed to serve in Operation Iraqi Freedom 32 days ago as part of the 3rd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division based in California, John Phelps said.

His family last heard from him late last week, when he called to tell them he was all right after a round of fierce fighting.

"We just weren't quite sure exactly where he was at," John Phelps said. "We called him on Tuesday when 12 were killed in Ramadi ... he called home right after that to say he was OK. Then the next morning he was the one on the news."

Chance Phelps joined the Marine Corps while still a high schooler in Colorado, where he had lived recently with his mother. Friends said he was proud to serve his country.

"He was proud to be a Marine," said Ed Wilkerson, a friend of the family and commander of the VFW chapter in Dubois. "I saw him back in late September or October and he was really excited about being a Marine."

Wilkerson, who had known Chance Phelps since he was a child, said one of his passions was hunting.

Phelps' sister is also in the military, working for the U.S. Navy at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., their father said.

No funeral services had yet been scheduled. The family was waiting for Phelps' body to be returned from Iraq, Wilkerson said.

Phelps is the eighth person with Wyoming ties killed in the line of duty since President Bush declared a war on terrorism following the Sept. 11 attacks.