Sgt. Dillon B. Foxx
Born Dec. 2, 1987 in Traverse City, MI
Died Feb. 5, 2010 in Badghis Province, Afghanistan
Sgt. Dillon Black Foxx of Traverse City, Michigan spent his early years living in Tennessee. When he was 17 he moved to Michigan where he graduated from high school in 2006. He enlisted in the Army in May 2006 at the age of 18. When he did, his friends thought he was crazy. They reminded him the country was at war. Nope, he said, he wasn’t crazy; he was doing exactly what he needed to do. An awesome soldier with a free spirit, he maintained the same personality he carried his whole life into the military: a self-starter and someone others could count on. Dillon attended One Station Unit Training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and Basic Airborne School at Fort Benning, Georgia. When he finished his training, Dillon reported to Fort Bragg, where he was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment. In January 2007, he deployed with the unit to Afghanistan for 15 months. He returned in April 2008. He was promoted to sergeant in January 2009 and went to Afghanistan in August for his second deployment, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, his duty as a forward observer. He died February 5 in Bala Murghab, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Dillon received numerous awards including an Army Commendation with Valor Device, the Army Commendation with two Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters, the Army Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal, the Combat Action Badge, the Basic Parachutist Badge and the Purple Heart posthumously. His son, Kaiden Levi; his mother, Trina Pfua; and his father, Robert Lentz, survive him.
