{"id":4794,"date":"2026-03-15T12:02:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-15T12:02:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/?p=4794"},"modified":"2026-03-15T12:02:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T12:02:20","slug":"heartbreaking-tribute-to-sgt-declan-coady-family-shares-final-texts-last-words-of-love-and-the-agony-of-waiting-for-news-after-deadly-iranian-drone-strike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/?p=4794","title":{"rendered":"Heartbreaking Tribute to Sgt. Declan Coady: Family Shares Final Texts, Last Words of Love, and the Agony of Waiting for News After Deadly Iranian Drone Strike"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The family of Sgt. Declan J. Coady<\/strong>, the 20-year-old Army Reservist from West Des Moines, Iowa, is sharing raw, emotional memories of their youngest son \u2014 the youngest of the six U.S. soldiers killed in the March 1, 2026, Iranian drone attack on Port Shuaiba in Kuwait \u2014 just weeks before he would have turned 21 on May 5.<\/p>\n

In poignant interviews with CNN and the Associated Press, Declan\u2019s older sister Keira Coady<\/strong> fought back tears as she described the unbearable night the family learned of his death. \u201cI still can\u2019t believe it\u2019s real,\u201d she said. \u201cI wish I had called him one more time just to say I love you. That night we got the news was one of the worst nights of my life.\u201d
\n\"Family<\/p>\n

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Keira recounted how Declan had been texting and calling home almost hourly during the escalating tensions, always reassuring them: \u201cI\u2019m good.\u201d He kept the family updated on his plans for when he\u2019d return stateside, sharing excitement about seeing everyone again. Then, suddenly, the messages stopped. \u201cWe kept hoping it was just bad signal or he was busy,\u201d Keira said. \u201cBut then the knock at the door came\u2026 and everything changed forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Declan, a sophomore at Drake University and member of the Des Moines-based 103rd Sustainment Command, was deployed to Kuwait in August 2025. His family remembers him as endlessly passionate \u2014 especially when talking about the things he loved. \u201cIf you got him talking about something he was passionate about, you were the luckiest person in the room,\u201d Keira shared. \u201cHe lit up. That was Declan.\u201d<\/p>\n

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His father, Andrew Coady<\/strong>, also spoke publicly for the first time, calling his son \u201can incredible young man\u201d who truly loved serving his country. \u201cDeclan was dedicated, smart, kind, and fearless,\u201d Andrew said. \u201cHe believed in what he was doing, and he made us proud every single day.\u201d
\n\"US<\/p>\n

The attack \u2014 which targeted a U.S. logistics hub at the commercial port \u2014 bypassed defenses and claimed the lives of six soldiers, including Declan, who was posthumously promoted to Sergeant. He leaves behind grieving parents, siblings, friends from his fencing community, and classmates who remember his bright smile and quiet determination.<\/p>\n

As the nation mourns the first wave of casualties in the conflict, the Coady family\u2019s words remind us of the human faces behind the headlines: a young man full of life, love for his family, and dreams cut tragically short.<\/p>\n

Our hearts are with the Coady family, Keira, Andrew, and everyone who loved Declan during this devastating time. Rest in peace, Sgt. Declan Coady \u2014 your light and your service will never be forgotten.<\/p>\n

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<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  The family of Sgt. Declan J. Coady, the 20-year-old Army Reservist from West Des Moines, Iowa, is sharing raw, emotional memories of their youngest son \u2014 the youngest of … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4795,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4794","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4794"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4794\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4796,"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4794\/revisions\/4796"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/heightshowtime.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}