JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Edward Wilton III loved the United States and Ukraine. The 22-year-old lived in Jacksonville but had Ukrainian roots.
His grandmother is of Ukrainian descent, so when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, he told his family he wanted to fight for his heritage.
“He said, ‘I need to go there and that's where I need to be,’” said Wilton’s father, Edward Wilton, Jr.
Wilton III died about two weeks after his 22nd birthday. His father says he was killed in action, during a mortar barrage in early April. His father says he last spoke to his son about an hour before his death.
“Our phone called ended with a little bit of rustling in the background. He’s saying, ‘I got to go,’ which I assume was his mission at the time, the mission that he died on.”
Wilton III attended Orange Park High School, but graduated in Washington State. His father says he was enrolled in EMT school when the war between Russia and Ukraine began. He attended Army boot camp at Fort Benning, Georgia.
At the time of his death, Wilton III was fighting with the International Legion for the Defense of Ukraine and was killed the killed in Luhansk, in the western part of Ukraine.
“He was a very fierce patriot,” his father remembers.
Wilton III also loved the Jacksonville Jaguars.
His father says his son was joking with the medical team treating him and, “He was making fun of one of the men’s football teams because he was a huge football fan. The individual man said, ‘What are you talking about? You’re a Jacksonville Jaguars fan.’ He said, ‘The Jaguars are going to win the Super Bowl!’ He said, ‘Trevor Lawrence is awesome.’ That was the last anybody heard,” Wilton, Jr said.
Wilton III will be laid to rest Thursday. His funeral is at 10 a.m. at St. Joseph Historic Church, located at 4212 Loretto Road in Jacksonville.
