Army Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Fuerst III - 2011 Honoree

Army Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Fuerst III, 26
TAMPA, FL, USA
U.S. Army
SSG, HHC, 53D INFANTRY BRIGADE, PINELLAS PARK, FL
KAN DAHAR, AFGHANISTAN 06/24/2006

Joe was training Afghan National Army soldiers in the Panjwayi District of Kandahar Province in Afghanistan. The evening of 24 June 2006, his service to others came to an abrupt end. Small arms and rocket propelled grenade (RPG) fire fatally wounded Staff Sergeant Joe Fuerst as he was leading a mission in support of Operation Mountain Thrust. Over the course of his Army service, Joe earned several awards and medals including the Bronze Star with “V” (valor) device.

He went from Tiger Cub to Eagle in Scouting. He was an alter server at Christ the King Catholic Church from seventh grade through high school. At H.B. Plant High School, he plied his physical skills on the swimming and diving team and lent his clear voice to the chorus. Joe came to revel in outdoor activities. Air boating on the water, four wheeling on land, or hanging from a parachute in the air – Joe took to them all. Upon high school graduation in 1998, Joe spent a couple of semesters at Hillsboro Community College before leaving his studies to enlist in the Army.

When he completed active duty, Joe returned to Tampa. Harboring a desire to serve others, he completed his degree in criminal justice and graduated from the police academy. Joe also joined the Florida Army National Guard. There Joe met and fell in love with a fellow soldier, Tara. Marching was not the only steps they took together. They also learned to dance the two-step for their March 2005 wedding. They bought a piece of property in nearby Brooksville where they planned to settle in after Joe’s enlistment was up. Not long after becoming husband and wife, however, both sergeants deployed to Afghanistan as part of the Florida Guard’s 53rd Infantry Brigade.

He is survived by his wife Tara was also in the Army and was deployed to Afghanistan when news came of her husband’s death.