The father of Capt. Nichola Goddard, who was killed last month in Afghanistan, says his family was overwhelmed by the support they received from Canadians and that he takes solace in the fact his daughter died doing something she believed in.

Speaking on CTV's Question Period on Sunday, Timothy Goddard said his daughter believed Canadian troops were performing a valuable service in Afghanistan.

"The only solace that we got was that she did die doing something that she felt was the right thing...She saw herself as working toward helping to establish and solidify a legitimate government in Afghanistan that would lead to a climate of peace and prosperity for that country," said the University of Calgary professor.

Nichola Goddard, 26, was killed May 17 in Afghanistan after being hit by shrapnel from a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Taliban insurgents. She was at her post as a forward observation officer in a light-armoured vehicle when the Canadian military unit came under attack.

She was Canada's first female combat soldier to die in battle and the 16th Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan.

Goddard gave an eloquent eulogy at his daughter's funeral in which he also criticized Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government for a policy of barring the media from repatriation ceremonies for fallen soldiers.

Harper later said his policy had been misunderstood and it was always up to the families of fallen soldiers whether to allow reporters to attend.

"They (Canadian soldiers) are there for us, the people of Canada, and when we lose people ... it seemed to us as a family that this is something that should be open," Goddard said of his disagreement with the Tory policy.

"It is a part of the whole thing.  You cannot just show people going off, you know, with flags flying and drums blaring and so on, and then not show them coming home."

Goddard said he hopes and believes his daughter did not die in vain.

"At the memorial service in Shilo (Manitoba), the other day, one of the speakers said if soldiers did not believe in what they were doing they may as well take off their uniform and not go. 

"They do not make the policy, but they are the people who have to implement it.

"I hope that her loss and the loss of the other soldiers and the diplomat who have been killed there already, that in the end we will see some peace and stability in Afghanistan."