Their Story
Remembering Connor J. Bednarzyk.
Captain Connor J. Bednarzyk, United States Army, died on September 7, 2018, at the age of 25, in a single tactical vehicle accident during a training mission near Fort Benning, Georgia. Born October 16, 1992, he was raised in Doylestown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Central Bucks High School East in 2011, where he received the Colby Umbrell Award for academics and individual character.
He was commissioned through the Army ROTC program at Penn State University, finishing in the top ten percent of ROTC graduates nationally. Connor earned his Ranger tab and served first as a platoon leader with 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colorado.
He was then selected for the 75th Ranger Regiment, where he served as platoon leader of the Distribution Platoon, Echo Company, 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, at Fort Benning, Georgia. Over a three-year Army career he was known for his leadership, his humility, and his care for the soldiers under his command.
A lover of music, Connor often played the piano and guitar for his family and friends. He was laid to rest with full military honors at Washington Crossing National Cemetery in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
Sources: U.S. Army press release, 12 September 2018; Travis Manion Foundation fallen hero profile; Army Ranger Lead The Way Fund; The Philadelphia Inquirer, 17 September 2018; Steel Hearts legacy memorial copy.
