Freedom Remembered

1st Lt. Ivan D. Lechowich, 27, of Valrico, Fla., Sep 28, in Ghazni province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 5th Engineer Battalion, 4th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. He attended King High School and the University of Florida. Ivan had become a first-time father just a week ago. His daughter was born a week early and the first lieutenant was able to see her via Skype from Afghanistan. Originally enlisting in the Army in July of 2009, Lechowich entered officer candidate school and was commissioned about half a year later at Fort Benning, Ga., in January 2010 and subsequently went through the Engineer Basic Officer Leadership Course at Fort Leonard Wood; he then became the company executive officer for the 554th Engineer Battalion Sapper Leader Course, also at Fort Leonard Wood. By December he was assigned to the battalion staff of the 5th Engineer Battalion, also at Fort Leonard Wood, but after a short time became a platoon leader in the 515th Sapper Company and deployed to Afghanistan in April of 2011. He was awarded the Bronze Star medal, Purple Heart, National Defense Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Campaign Star, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal, the Combat Action Badge. In addition, he earned the Sapper Tab, which is the engineer equivalent to the Ranger Tab.

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