DOD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Sgt. Louis R. Torres, 23, of Oberlin, Ohio, died Aug. 22, in San Antonio, Texas, of wounds suffered when he encountered an enemy improvised explosive device, Aug. 6, in Kandahar, Afghanistan.
Torres was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.
For more information pertaining to this release, media may contact the I Corps public affairs office at 253-477-3048 or 253-370-9861.
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By Tonya Sams
Published: Thursday, August 23, 2012, 9:09 PM Updated: Thursday, August 23, 2012, 10:29 PM
OBERLIN, Ohio — A 23-year-old soldier from Oberlin died Wednesday in San Antonio, Texas, after being injured Aug. 6 while on duty in Kandahar, Afghanistan.
Sgt. Louis R. Torres was injured by "an enemy improvised explosive device," according to a news release from the Department of Defense.
"He was very outgoing, very much a leader," said his mother, Armanda Ellis. "He loved fighting for his country."
The decorated soldier joined the Army in June 2008 after graduating from Lorain County Joint Vocation School in Oberlin. While at JVS he played football and took classes in law enforcement and security.
"I knew something was up," said Ellis, referring to his interest in the military while in high school. "During his 12th-grade year, I kept getting calls from the Army and Marines. I kept hanging up on them."
Ellis remembers that even as a 5- or 6-year-old Torres loved to play with military men. He was also a history buff, sitting in front of the television watching the History Channel, learning about various wars and battles.
Two weeks after graduating, Torres told his mother that he needed his birth certificate because he had joined the Army.
Torres immediately started training at Fort Benning in Georgia. By October 2008 he was stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.
He was deployed to Iraq from August 2009 from June 2010. He deployed with his brigade to Afghanistan last December, according to Department of Defense. He had just more than a month remaining on his tour.
Torres had just visited his family in Oberlin at the end of June. He returned to duty July 2, a few days before his birthday on July 5.
Ellis said that her other son, Alberto Torres, 24, who was also stationed in Afghanistan, was told by officials that his brother had been injured. He accompanied Torres to Germany before being transferred to San Antonio. Military officials awarded Louis Torres a Purple Heart after he arrived in San Antonio. He had already won a number of honors, including Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and Afghanistan Campaign Medal.
"He was a leader, not a follower," his mother said. "He was very kind-hearted and a great son. He was always thinking of me. He made sure that I was on Facebook so he could tell me Happy Mother's Day and Valentine's Day."
He wanted to wait before starting a family.
"He was trying to do it right," his mother said.
Besides his mother, older brother Alberto and father Alberto Torres Sr., he also is survived by his brother, Andre Ellis, 18, and a sister, Ayanna Morrison, 14.
A memorial service will be held at the hospital in San Antonio. He should return to Oberlin next week with services to possibly be held Friday, Aug. 31.
"I'm very proud of him," said Ellis. " He was so dedicated. He was good at what he did."
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