Spc. Jackson D. Johnson, 20, of Hillsboro, who died March 5 in an accident in Kuwait, will be buried at 11 p.m. Thursday (March 21) in the National Cemetery at Jefferson Barracks, according to a Facebook post from his mother, April Johnson.
“This has been extremely hard on me, my husband (Jason) and 11-year-old daughter (Renee),” she said “We miss him so very much. He had a wonderful personality and loved everyone. He definitely knew how to put a smile on your face.
“Jackson and his little sister were very close. They were each other’s whole world. Hearing the news of his death has been very heartbreaking.”
Johnson was a 2017 Hillsboro High School graduate. He and Sgt. Holli R. Bolinski, 37, of Pinckneyville, Ill., died March 5 from injuries sustained in a two-vehicle accident in Kuwait, according to a written statement from the Army.
Johnson and Bolinski were flown to St. Louis Lambert International Airport on Monday (March 18), the post said.
Johnson was transported to Kutis Funeral Home, 5255 Lemay Ferry Road, in south St. Louis County, where visitation is scheduled for 4-8 p.m. today (March 19) and Wednesday (March 20), according to the post.
“We welcome anyone and everyone out to show support for our family,” April Johnson said. “We are still working out last-minute details about his funeral. However, we are asking for anyone who rides motorcycles to come ride the day of the funeral; my son loved motorcycles. I will post more info as we know more.”
Johnson, Bolinski and a third U.S. soldier, who was injured in the March 5 accident, were in a military vehicle that collided with a civilian commercial truck in northern Kuwait, a U.S. Army report said.
The soldiers were flown by helicopter to the U.S. Military Hospital-Kuwait at Camp Arifjan. Bolinski was pronounced dead upon arrival at the hospital, and Johnson died later at the hospital, the Army reported.
On March 8, Maj. Andy Thaggard of the 184th Sustainment Command in Kuwait said the commercial vehicle was a water truck and the incident is under investigation. He said he believes the investigation will take “about a month.”
All three soldiers were assigned to the 657th Transportation Detachment, U.S. Army Reserve, based in Mount Vernon, Ill., and were stationed at Camp Arifjan as part of Operation Spartan Shield.