Hometown: Antioch, IL
Branch: U.S. Army 
Unit: 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, New York
Military Honors: Army Commendation Medal
Date of Sacrifice: March 9, 2011 - in Kunduz Province, Afghanistan
Age: 22
Conflict: War in Afghanistan, 2001-2021

Andrew Wade was a star sweeper for the Antioch Community High School “Sequoits” varsity soccer team in northern Illinois. He played for Chicago Kickers Soccer Club for six years. Wade’s coach, Jorge Anduray, told the Daily Herald, “We often time talk about the player on the team that is the first one there and the last one to leave, and that was Andrew. He talked about the sport day and night.”

Wade lived in Antioch, on the Illinois-Wisconsin border, along with his parents Douglas and Elizabeth (Hagedorn) Wade, his sister, Alicia, and brothers, Steven and Jonathan. The family worshipped at Our Lady of the Lakes St. Peter Catholic Church.

After graduating high school in 2007, Wade enlisted in the United States Army. In September of 2008, he left for Fort Benning, Georgia—becoming the 5th generation of his family to serve in the military.

After completing Basic Training at Benning, Wade was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division and sent to Fort Drum, New York.

Wade was trained as a weapons specialist, and in the spring of 2010 was deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Within months, Spc. Wade was assigned to an elite scout platoon and on a fast track to promotion.

After a year in northern Afghanistan’s Kunduz Province, Spc. Wade was looking forward to returning home in early March of 2011. Wade’s sister, Alicia, said he had dreams of becoming a professional soccer player. He was planning a trip around the world with his friends after they finished their military service.

According to The New York Times, “…the day before he was scheduled to leave Kunduz, Specialist Andrew P. Wade, 22, was accidentally shot and killed by a friend who was practicing a drill with his 9-millimeter pistol inside their tent.”

Spc. Wade had been accidentally shot in the shoulder and neck, and was rushed to Bagram Air Base, north of Kabul. At first there were hopes that he’d survive, but he succumbed to his injuries two days later, on March 9, 2011.

Spc. Andrew Paul Wade was laid to rest on March 21, 2011, with full military honors, near his hometown. In recognition for his service to his country, Spc. Wade was awarded the NATO Medal, the Army Commendation 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, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.

Sources
Details and photo provided by Ms. Elizabeth Wade, Spc. Wade’s Gold Star Mother and Ms. Eileen Voigt, Spc. Wade’s aunt
The Daily Herald, March 9, 2011: Antioch soldier killed in Afghanistan
Lake County Journal, March 17, 2011: Local soldier dies while serving in Afghanistan
CBS 2 News: Soldier From Antioch Dies in Afghanistan
Illinois General Assembly: HR0194
Military Times—Honor the Fallen: Army Spc. Andrew P. Wade
The New York Times, May 29, 2011—After Combat, the Unexpected Perils of Coming Home
Burial Site: Find a Grave