Saturday, January 30, 2010

Wisconsin teen follows slain cousin's path to dangerous eastern Afghanistan

When Army Sgt. Joshua Brennan of McFarland was killed in Afghanistan in 2007, it only stiffened the resolve of his 17-year-old cousin, Joseph, to join the fight.

“After Josh died, I told Joseph, ‘You can’t be getting out there for vengeance to find Josh’s killer,’ ” said Joseph’s father, Terry Brennan of Mequon. “But that wasn’t it. He was proud of what Josh did and wanted to follow in Josh’s footprints.”

Joseph, now 19, followed more closely than anyone in his big Wisconsin family expected.

Above: family photo shows Pvt. Joseph Brennan of Mequon and his fiance, Emily Barikmo, a UW-Milwaukee student.

Read the full story in the Wisconsin State Journal.