Joliet Street Dedication For Sgt. Jose Duenez: Here's What You Need To Know

JOLIET, IL — The city of Joliet issued a press release on Wednesday announcing that Joliet Mayor Terry D’Arcy, members of the Joliet City Council, state and county elected officials, family members, city staff, and community members are attending Friday morning's street dedication.

Albert Avenue will be officially renamed “SSG Jose Dueñez Jr. Way” in honor of Joliet native Staff Sergeant (SSG) Jose Dueñez Jr., one of four U.S. Army soldiers killed in a training accident in Lithuania in mid-April. SSG Dueñez, who would have turned 26 on April 8, was one of six siblings. He is survived by his wife and their one-year-old son. He enlisted in the U.S. Army after graduating from high school in 2017.

The event will be at 11 a.m. Friday at the corner of Albert Avenue and Wilson Avenue.

"According to reports from the U.S. Army, SSG Dueñez and three fellow soldiers—all assigned to the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart—went missing on the morning of March 25 while deployed in Lithuania in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve. The bodies of all four soldiers were later discovered submerged in a marsh inside their armored vehicle." the city of Joliet announced.