Army Spc. Joshua T. Lancaster

Died January 19, 2011 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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22, of Millbrook, Ala., assigned to 184th Ordnance Battalion, 52nd Ordnance Group, Fort Campbell, Ky.; died Jan. 19, in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked the Kandahar airfield with indirect fire.

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Fort Campbell soldier from Ala. killed in combat

The Associated Press

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — A Fort Campbell soldier from Alabama has been killed during combat in Afghanistan.

The Department of Defense announced Spc. Joshua T. Lancaster of Millbrook, Ala., died Jan. 19 of wounds he received when insurgents attacked the Kandahar airfield.

The 22-year-old Lancaster was assigned to the 184th Ordnance Battalion, 52nd Ordnance Group, based at Fort Campbell.

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‘We appreciate what he did for the country’

By Hamilton Richardson

Prattville (Ala.) Progress

The city of Millbrook, as well as many at Fort Campbell, Ky., have been in mourning since the death of Army Spc. Joshua Lancaster, who was killed in action Jan. 19 in Afghanistan.

Lancaster, who joined the Army in March 2008 and arrived at Fort Campbell in August 2010, was killed as a result of a rocket attack at Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan.

Lancaster was a Signal Support Systems Specialist assigned to the 723rd Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company, 184th Ordnance Battalion, 52nd Ordnance Group.

During his military career, Lancaster had been honored with the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon.

The 22-year-old soldier was supposed to be home from overseas in early February and friends and family had been planning a welcome home party for him.

Al Kelley, mayor of Millbrook, said that he did not personally know Lancaster but that he knew that the city was mourning the loss.

“We appreciate what he did for the country,” Kelley said. “We mourn with the family.”

Lancaster is survived by his wife, Melanie Lancaster of Clarksville, Tenn.; his mother, Kimberly Irwin of Millbrook; and extended family in the area.

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Was looking forward to homecoming, reunion with friends

By Matt Okarmus

Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser

Army Spc. Joshua Lancaster of Millbrook was soft-spoken and cared about his friends, said Tracy Joyce, who first met Lancaster when the two were elementary school classmates.

Lancaster, 22, was killed Jan. 19 while serving in Afghanistan.

Joyce said Lancaster’s death while serving his country speaks to his character.

“If something happened over here where I was getting shot at, he would jump in the way,” Joyce said. “He was so unselfish. He cared about his friends.”

Lancaster was assigned to Fort Campbell, Ky. The Eagle Honors page that honors fallen soldiers on the Fort Campbell website states that Lancaster died as a result of a rocket attack at Kandahar Airfield.

Joyce said Lancaster was expected to return home from Afghanistan on Feb. 11. Friends were planning a party for him, but Lancaster wanted to keep things modest, Joyce said.

“He said all he wanted was hamburgers and hot dogs,” he said.

When Joyce moved to Millbrook at age 10, he said he quickly became friends with Lancaster. He said the two, along with fellow classmate Justin Willis, formed a tight group. He said the friendship “must have been in the cards” because they often had the same classes throughout their school years.

“Sometimes we had to be separated out of classes because we were always cutting up, cracking jokes,” Joyce said, adding that Lancaster might have been guilty by association. “He was soft-spoken, wasn’t the troublemaker. I think I was the instigator.”

When Lancaster joined the Army, there came a time when the three friends went in separate directions, with Joyce moving to Auburn and Willis already in the military. Lancaster’s coming home party in February was going to serve as a reunion of sorts, Joyce said.

“It was going to bring everyone together,” he said. “Everyone was going to be there for him.”

Lancaster got married and moved to Tennessee about the time he joined the Army in March 2008, Joyce said. He was a Signal Support Systems Specialist assigned to the 723rd Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company, 184th Ordnance Battalion, 52nd Ordnance Group at Fort Campbell, Ky. He arrived at Fort Campbell in October 2010, according to the Army.

His awards and decorations included the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon.

He is survived by his wife, Melanie, of Clarksville, Tenn.; and his mother, Kimberly Irwin of Millbrook, according to Fort Campbell.

Lancaster’s family traveled to Delaware to bring his remains home, Joyce said.