Army Spc. Joseph A. Kennedy

Died April 15, 2011 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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25, of St. Paul, Minn.; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Knox, Ky.; died April 15 in Ghazni province, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with small-arms fire.

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Family: Spc. said things were improving on the ground

The Associated Press

INVER GROVE HEIGHTS, Minn. — The parents of a soldier killed in Afghanistan say their son believed in what he was doing.

Family and friends of Army Spc. Joseph Kennedy, 25, of St. Paul shared memories at an April 19 news conference.

Kennedy was killed April 15 when enemy forces attacked his unit with small arms. He was on his first combat tour.

A relative read a statement from Kennedy’s parents, WCCO-TV reported. In the statement, Kennedy’s mother, Valerie, said her son told her in his last few phone calls home that he felt they were building positive relationships with the Afghan army and the citizens.

Kennedy graduated from Simley High School in Inver Grove Heights and decided to join the Army in 2009. He was part of the 1st Infantry Division out of Fort Knox, Ky.