Tributes for Fallen Yorktown Soldier Continue, Remembered as "Funny Guy"

Tributes continue to pour in for the young soldier who was killed when insurgents attacked his unit in Kandahar using an improvised explosive device after a morning patrol in Afghanistan on Monday. He died of wounds suffered in the IED explosion.

David Richard Fahey, Jr., 23, a former Yorktown resident serving in the U.S. Army, was a hero to his friends and family.

A memorial of flowers, a flag, and a Gold Star banner that indicates a family member in the military has died in service, are placed at the curbside of the Yorktown home of Pfc. David R. Fahey Jr.'s family, located on Baldwin Road. 

All town building flags are flying at half-staff, as they are in Fahey's native Norwalk and throughout the state of Connecticut on order of the governor. Flags will remain at half-staff until sunset on the day of burial, details of which are pending. The family left on Tuesday for Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to receive the young man's remains.

David's uncle and aunt, Tom and Fran Fahey, adopted him and his siblings, Phyllis and Nicholas, when he was a child. Nicholas is a junior at . The couple also has four biological children — Brianna, Tyler, Samantha and Blake. Samantha and Tyler are also students at YHS, in 9th and 12th grades, respectively. David Fahey attended Faith Preparatory School in New Milford, Conn.

Phyllis Fahey has created a Facebook tribute page for her brother, saying "R.I.P David you will always be our hero! You are such an inspiration to everyone and anyone! We love you so much words cannot describe, you are in a better place David."

Friends say they'll remember him as a man who was able to make people smile, bring laughter into every situation, and as someone people could count on.

Jaclyn Giordano, is one of the 81 people who have signed up so far on the page. Yesterday, she wrote on the Facebook page, "I will always remember David being the funny guy. He was always pulling pranks and joking around."

"David, I will miss your sensitive side, the thinker in you, I will miss your smile and your laugh," Heather Butcher also wrote on Facebook yesterday. "You are a special guy from an amazing family, and we will walk with them through this in love and support. We will celebrate your life and honor you in your death. Thank you for putting on the uniform and serving the way you did. Not everybody could do it, but you did, and we are so proud of you!"

Another person, Katie O'Brien wrote on the wall that the young man was one of "the funniest guys" she has known and "could brighten up any atmosphere"

Fahey was a member of the  in Yorktown, where Monday night Pastor Dan O'Brien invited people in to mourn, and the church was "overflowing," said Joe Iaropoli, a family friend. Pastor O'Brien's son, also named Dan, was a close friend of Fahey's.

"We had a lot of amazing times together," Dan O'Brien Jr. said on Wednesday. "He is someone who was a hero to me and everyone else."

O'Brien described Fahey as a caring person, nice kid with a sensitive side, and someone who was always looking for a good laugh and enjoyed having fun. 

"I know that I will see him again in heaven, and that gives me comfort," he said.

Yorktown town board members had a moment of silence in Fahey's memory during their meeting on Tuesday.

"Remember him for having served our country in such a dedicated way," Supervisor Susan Siegel said. 

"Words are never enough to thank and honor the heroism of a fallen soldier," Assemblyman Steve Katz, of Yorktown, said in a statement on Tuesday. "On behalf of all residents of the 99th Assembly District, I would like to offer our most sincere condolences to the family, friends and loved ones of Army Pfc. David R. Fahey, Jr. and to thank them for the honorable service and sacrifice of this brave young man."

To further honor him, he said, he is drafting a legislative resolution in his name.

"I will continue working to honor the legacy of all soldiers who lost their lives defending our freedoms in the War on Terror, like David Fahey, by pushing for enactment of my legislation to create an exemplary medal to commemorate their service," he said. 

"Our sympathies go out to the family," Norwalk Mayor Richard A. Moccia said on Tuesday. Veterans groups in Norwalk may reach out to the family, he said. The mayor said he expected to be in touch with the family at some point, but not yet.

"We also want to respect their privacy right now and allow them to greive," he said. "If there's anything we can do to assist them in any way shape or form, we will."

"Our deepest sympathies go out to the family and friends of Pfc. David Fahey," Connecticut Governor Dan P. Malloy said in a statement. "Our country lost a brave and dedicated serviceman, and we stand with the men and women who are grieving the loss of Pfc. Fahey, and the families of the other brave soldiers, sailors, and airmen who have given the ultimate sacrifice. Our hearts go out to the soldiers who are working so hard, so far away from home. We wish for your safe and speedy return."

Fahey's awards and decorations include the Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Korea Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, NATO Medal, Drivers and Mechanics Badge.

Norwalk Patch Editor David Gurliacci contributed to this article. To read additional coverage on Norwalk Patch, click here.