Eight Americans were killed when an Ethiopian Airlines flight went down on Sunday. We now know at least one of them was a US Army veteran.
Antoine Lewis of Matteson, Illinois was aboard flight bound to Nairobi, Kenya when it crashed killing all 157 people. The passengers were from 35 countries, with Kenya shouldering the greatest share.
His mother, Antoinette, said her son was looking forward to exploring Kenya.
“He has told us he was excited about it,” she told CBS Chicago. “I will say that plane went down with him doing what he wanted to do most, and that was to stretch out and embrace our mother country.”
She added he had served in Afghanistan and South Korea.
The Lewis’ are longtime neighbors of Matteson Mayor Sheila Chalmers-Curren.
“I personally watched Captain Antoine Lewis grow from a young lad to an American hero,” she said in a statement.
“Antoine’s death has been devastating to our residents, the village administration and moreover, his family. Captain Lewis was raised by a patriotic family that has always shared a genuine concern for their neighbors, friends and fellow man.”
Lewis is survived by his parents, a wife, Yalena Lopez, who wedded last year and a 15-year-old son.
According to his Facebook account, he had studied at Chicago State University and commissioned through Officer Candidacy School. It also noted he was the driver for Fort Eustis’ Command Sergeant Major.
A native of Matteson, he lived in Ottawa, Canada after leaving the Army.