Note: This is an edited copy of a Thursday announcement from the Tennessee Department of Veterans Affairs.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Department of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Many-Bears Grinder regretfully announce the loss of Tennessee soldier Staff Sgt. Christopher Michael Ward of Oak Ridge.

Ward was fatally injured when his patrol was struck by a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device, which detonated on Saturday, April 6, in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Staff Sergeant Ward was serving with Troop A, 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armor Brigade Combat Team, Fort Stewart, Ga.

The 24-year old soldier grew up in Arcadia, Fla. However, Ward moved to Tennessee with his mother, Joyce Ward, and attended Oak Ridge High School before earning his General Educational Development, or GED, diploma and enlisting in the United States Army in November 2006. [Read more…]