Army Cpl. Andrew C. Wilfahrt

Died February 27, 2011 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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31, of Rosemount, Minn.; assigned to 504th Military Police Battalion, 8th Military Police Brigade, 8th Theater Sustainment Command, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; died Feb. 27 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device.

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Fallen soldier remembered for musical gifts

The Associated Press

ROSEMOUNT, Minn. — Family and friends are remembering a fallen Minnesota soldier as kind, outgoing and musically-gifted.

The Defense Department said Cpl. Andrew Wilfahrt died Feb. 27 when insurgents attacked his unit with a bomb in Kandahar province.

In his hometown of Rosemount, word of his death spread quickly.

Shelia Wandersee lives in the cul-de-sac where Wilfahrt's parents reside. Wandersee says she remembers the melodies that would drift across the street when Wilfahrt was playing the piano.

The Star Tribune reported that the soldier's family was at Dover Air Force Base, Del., when Wilfahrt's remains arrived Feb. 28. Wilfahrt was assigned to a military police battalion based in Hawaii. He enlisted in the Army in January 2009.

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Flags lowered in honor of fallen corporal

The Associated Press

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Gov. Mark Dayton has ordered that flags at state and federal buildings be lowered to half-staff March 5 to honor a Minnesota soldier killed in Afghanistan.

Cpl. Andrew Wilfahrt, 31, of Rosemount died Feb. 27 when insurgents attacked his unit with a bomb in Kandahar province.

Dayton issued a proclamation recognizing Wilfahrt’s service and declaring that he died a hero. It also remembered Wilfahrt as a compassionate, cheery person and a gifted musician.

The Rosemount High School graduate enlisted in the Army in January 2009 and became a military police officer.