Army Spc. Lukasz D. Saczek

Remember Our Heroes

Army Spc. Lukasz D. Saczek, 23, of Lake in the Hills, Ill.

Spc. Saczek was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 178th Infantry Regiment, Illinois Army National Guard, Woodstock, Ill.; died May 10, 2009 in Nangarhar province, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained from a noncombat-related incident.

Northwest Herald -- A Lake in the Hills soldier serving in Afghanistan died Sunday, the U.S. military reported Monday.

Spc. Lukasz D. Saczek, 23, was assigned to Company D, 1st Battalion, 178th Infantry based in Woodstock.

He died as a result of a non-combat-related injury that remains under investigation, said Maj. Brad Leighton, public affairs director of the Illinois National Guard. 

Saczek had a 6-week-old child and was married to Kathryn Saczek, Leighton said.

He also is survived by his mother and father, Ewa and Dariusz Saczek.

Saczek graduated from Steinmetz Academic Centre in Chicago in 2005 and enlisted in the Illinois Army National Guard in July 2006.

It was his first deployment, and he served in Operation Enduring Freedom. 

He was one of 55 soldiers who left Woodstock on Aug. 24 for two months of training before a yearlong deployment in Afghanistan.

He died in the Nangarhar province, Leighton said.

"As we continue through this difficult deployment, each and every soldier is a vital family member to this National Guard force," said Maj. Gen. William Enyart, adjutant general of the Illinois National Guard.

"Spc. Saczek, like all our soldiers, made the decision to volunteer to serve his country in a time of war and will be remembered." 



The soldiers from Delta Company, 1st Battalion, 178th Infantry comprise one of about 30 units with the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team. The unit provides security for reconstruction teams that help the Afghan government build roads, hospitals, government buildings and other infrastructure.



Army Spc. Lukasz D. Saczek was killed in a non-combat related incident on 5/10/09.