Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal.
~
From a headstone in Ireland
Sgt. Andrew R. Tobin
DOD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Sgt. Andrew R. Tobin, 24, of Jacksonville, Ill., died Aug. 24 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit using small arms fire. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.
“Everybody knows somebody who everybody just likes; who gets along with everybody — that was Drew,” Aaron Smith said of his nephew, Sgt. Andrew Tobin, who was killed Wednesday in combat in Afghanistan. Sadly, Sgt Tobin, a squad leader, in the 10th Mountain Division, which is known for its toughness, was killed in Kandahar, Afghanistan on August 24th.
Born in Glendora, Sgt. Tobin moved to Illinois and graduated from Manteno High School. He also went to college in Illinois, where he met his wife, Katie.
Chad Wagner, to whom Sgt. Tobin was a big brother figure remembered he was in college: An ice storm in Jacksonville in 2007 knocked all the power out at MacMurray, leaving students stuck in their dorms with nothing to do. Tobin knocked on Wagner’s door with underwear on his head.
“He completely made a fool of himself,” Wagner said. “He wanted to dress up and go to room to room looking like a fool.”
Tobin’s Manteno High School principal, Paul Russert, remembers him as a conscientious and respectful young man, who had a good work ethic and a funny personality.
This was Sgt. Tobin's second deployment, the first having been from January to December in 2009. He began this deployment in March.
Following this deployment, Sgt. Tobin had planned to take Army helicopter training. He was undecided about his future career plans, having talked about making the Army his career, but also about the possibility of flying a medical helicopter or going into law enforcement.
Sgt. Tobin is survived by his beloved wife, Katie, and his mother and father, and many family and friends in Illinois and California. May they be granted peace.
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