Steven Thomas Drees

On June 28, 2009, Steven Thomas Drees died from injuries sustained while in Afghanistan. Just four days earlier, his unit was attacked by insurgents who set off a rocket-propelled grenade that resulted in a small arms fire. He was transferred to a hospital in Landstuhl, Germany where his parents and twin brother arrived to say their last goodbyes. After life-support was disconnected, his wishes to be an organ donor were granted. He had turned 19 just a month before. 

Drees was a 2008 graduate of Peshtigo High School in Wisconsin. He joined the Army on July 25, 2008, and was trained at Fort Benning, Georgia. He left for Afghanistan on his 19th birthday––May 26, 2009––and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, based at Fort Carson, Colorado. 

His awards include the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, and many others. 

He is survived by his parents, Dawn Bayer and Paul Drees, his twin brother, Charlie, and a son, Steven.