|
|
Posted: Sunday, 01 November 2009 10:05AM
Friends pay tribute to fallen soldier
|
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (STNG) -- Both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly honored Army Spc. Jared Stanker, of Evergreen Park, with a moment of silence Friday morning to venerate the 22-year-old's selfless sacrifice to his county.
Stanker, a 2006 graduate of Brother Rice High School in Chicago, was one of seven soldiers who died Tuesday in Arghandab Valley in Afghanistan after enemy forces attacked their vehicle with an improvised explosive device, according to the U.S. Department of Defense.
State Sen. Ed Maloney (D-Chicago) who used to work at Brother Rice, called for a moment of silence while state Rep. James Brosnahan (D-Evergreen Park) also led a moment of silence in the House.
"I've seen too many of my colleagues do this and I hoped I wouldn't have to," Maloney said.
While state elected leaders paid their respects, Stanker's family and friends grieve and wait. Little can be done to formally mark Stanker's passing until the U.S. Army completes its investigation and returns his body to Illinois for burial.
Funeral arrangements are not yet complete. The Stanker family witnessed the return of their son's body to U.S. soil Wednesday at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
"I have told the family we will assist in any way we can," Evergreen Park Mayor Jim Sexton said Friday. "Their wishes are of utmost concern. Right now we're respecting their privacy and letting them mourn."
As word of Stanker's death began to spread, friends as close as Chicago and as far as the Middle East flocked to Stanker's Facebook page, where the soldier had posted dozens of photos of his time in basic training, goofing around in the barracks and images of the Afghan mountainside.
Other postings appeared on the Southside Supporting Troops Facebook page, a site set up and maintained by Stanker's girlfriend, Abbey Oman; sister, Jordan Brandl and mother, Susan Stanker.
|
Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
|
|
|
|
E-Mail Story
Print Story
