The following is a news release issued July 25 by the U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Division regarding the death of Sgt. Eric E. Williams of Murrieta.
FORT BRAGG, N.C. - An 82nd Airborne Division flight medic was killed Monday when the forward operating base came under enemy fire in Logar Province, Afghanistan.
was in-transit from his duty station in Ghazni Province, Afghanistan to re-deploy to the United States when he was killed. He was assigned to Company C, 3-82 General Support Aviation Battalion, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division.
"Our deepest condolences go out to the entire Williams family during this time of great sadness," said Col. T.J. Jamison, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade commander, of Broken Arrow, Okla. "Eric was a valued member of the Task Force Pegasus family, and his memory as a great medic and Soldier who always put others before himself will not be forgotten."
Williams entered the U.S. Army in 2007, completing basic training at Fort Benning, Ga. He completed advance individual training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, earning military occupational specialty 68W, Healthcare Specialist, and subsequently earned the status of combat flight medic.
This was Williams' second deployment. He previously served a 14-month deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2008-2009 as a combat medic.
"He was always on his game," said Sgt. Cormac Chandler, a Medevac crew chief who served with Williams, and native of Murfreesboro, Tenn. "Will always kept his cool, which in turn helped me keep my cool, and he never quit. That was the caliber of his personality. That is who he was."
His awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, the Air Medal, the Army Commendation Medal with Valor and oak leaf cluster, the Army Achievement Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal with one Campaign Star, the Iraq Campaign Medal with two Campaign Stars, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal, and the Combat Medical Badge.
He is survived by his wife, Wendi, and parents, Bruce and Janet Williams.
