The family of New York Army National Guardsman First Lieutenant Joseph Theinert laid him to rest today, marking the first death of a solider from the Sag Harbor, L.I. community since 1967.
According to the Department of Defense a roadside bomb killed Theinert on June 4, 2010, while on foot patrol in the Kandahar region of Afghanistan.
The 24-year-old was originally assigned to the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team in Syracuse, NY, but he volunteered for a program to serve 3 years on active duty before returning to a local unit.
He was serving as part of the 1st Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division when he was killed. He had been at this post for only a month.
Theinert’s commanding officer said that his unit had been forced into an area that was known to have improvised explosive devices. Theinert had managed to disable one device and was working on disabling a second bomb when he warned his men to get back as the explosive was triggered.
He was remembered by his family as a humanitarian.
“We live in a very self-centered society and he is my example of a selfless person," Chrystyna Kestler, Theinert’s mother told the Sag Harbor Express.
Local
The SUNY Albany graduate was brought back to his hometown Wednesday afternoon. A funeral procession traveled from Gabreski Airport through Main Street in Sag Harbor. Theinert will be laid to rest at Our Lady of the Isle Cemetery.
“I don’t want anyone to forget Joey and his sacrifice but also I don’t want people to forget about the soldiers still there," said his mother.
