Marine dedicates service to younger brother

Image courtesy: U.S. Army

Chad Stewart is getting set to deploy overseas with the Marines. When he gets his orders, he will carry them out with a heavy heart, as he just lost his little brother, Sgt. Dillon Foxx, in Afghanistan.

"He was very outgoing, very smart, a very quick learner," Stewart told WWTV-TV in northern Michigan.

Sgt. Foxx, who is pictured to the left, was killed on Friday in Bala Murghab, Afghanistan, when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device planted by terrorists. The 22-year-old 82nd Airborne soldier was on his second deployment to Afghanistan, where a memorial will soon be held in his honor. Fellow soldiers spoke to The Fayetteville Observer about the Fort Bragg-based paratrooper.

"He will be missed by everyone that knew him," said Staff Sgt. Matthew Fitzgerald, Foxx's squad leader. "He was always the first person I would come to for help to get things done. He made my job easy, knowing that I could count on him to get the job done.

"I know that he made a difference in my life, and I will try to live my life to the fullest for him," Fitzgerald said.

Foxx also made a difference in the life of his seven-month-old son, Kaiden Levi. WWTV-TV reports that Foxx was looking forward to helping raise him, as well as attending college, when he returned from Afghanistan. Instead, the fallen soldier's brother said he will try to carry on Foxx's legacy when he is deployed.

"Honestly, it just gives me more of a purpose then just what we originally [went] in for," Stewart said. "So it's more heartfelt, more meaningful now."

A memorial service will be held for Sgt. Dillon Foxx in Traverse City, Michigan, on a date that has yet to be determined.