Illinois flags are flying at half-staff this week in remembrance of a fallen soldier and Joliet father who was killed in a training accident last month.
According to the Department of Central Management Services, Gov. J.B. Pritzker ordered flags be flown at half-staff in honor of United States Army Staff Sergeant Jose Duenez, Jr.
The flags will be lowered from sunrise Tuesday through sunset Thursday.
In addition, Joliet Mayor Terry D’Arcy requested that flags throughout his city be lowered to half-staff starting at sunrise on Friday.
The request comes ahead of the funeral for Duenez Jr.
“This is a tragic loss of life,” D’Arcy said in a statement. “We all owe it to him and his family to show our deepest respect for his commitment to our country by lowering flags to half-staff.”
Visitation for Duenez Jr. will be held from 4-8 p.m. in Joliet, followed by a funeral starting at 11 a.m. Friday in Crest Hill.
Duenez Jr. was part of a group of soldiers in the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, who were on a tactical training exercise in Lithuania when they and their vehicle were reported missing March 25, the Army said.
Duenez Jr., 25, was identified earlier this month after his body was found along with Sgt. Edvin F. Franco, 25, of Glendale, California; and Pfc. Dante D. Taitano, 21, of Dededo, Guam. The name of the fourth soldier was not immediately made public.
This combination of images shows from left, Army Pfc. Dante D. Tatiana, 21, of Dededo, Guam, Sgt. Edwin F. Franco, 25, of Glendale, Calif., and Sgt. Jose Duenez, 25, of Joliet, Ill., three of the four soldiers who were killed in a training accident near Pabradė, Lithuania, in March 2025.Duenez Jr. leaves behind his 1-year-old son and his wife, Kai. He was born and raised in Joliet with five older sisters.
His family expressed condolences to the families of the three other soldiers, and they felt strong gratitude to the hundreds of Lithuanian and U.S. soldiers and rescuers who took part in the search through the thick forests and swampy terrain around Pabradė, 6 miles west of the border with Belarus.
According to the 3rd Infantry Division, Duenez was an M1 Abrams tank system maintainer and had served more than seven years in the Army. He deployed to Poland in 2021 and Germany in 2022, and he was currently serving in the 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment.
“Sgt. Jose Duenez will always hold a special place in our hearts. As both a leader and a soldier, he set an example every day — always the first to arrive and the last to leave, greeting every challenge with a smile and a readiness to support anyone who required assistance,” said Capt. Madyson K. Wellens, a commander in his squadron.
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