Henry Timothy Vakoc was a Roman Catholic priest and a United States Army chaplain during the Iraq War, attaining the rank of major.
16 Facts About Tim Vakoc
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Tim Vakoc was critically injured on May 29,2004, when his Humvee was struck by an IED as he was returning from celebrating Mass for soldiers.
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Tim Vakoc was the first documented US Army chaplain seriously injured during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
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Tim Vakoc graduated in 1978 from Benilde-St Margaret's School, Minneapolis.
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Tim Vakoc graduated from St Cloud State University, St Cloud, Minnesota and was a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
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Tim Vakoc was a member of the fraternity staff, visiting chapters in the midwestern and northeastern United States.
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Tim Vakoc attended Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity, at the University of St Thomas, St Paul, Minnesota.
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Tim Vakoc later served as associate pastor of St John Neumann Church, in Eagan, Minn.
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Tim Vakoc became an Army chaplain in 1996, receiving his commission as a lieutenant in the Army chaplain corps.
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Tim Vakoc then was reassigned to Hanau, Germany, During that time he deployed to Bosnia.
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Tim Vakoc was then assigned as chaplain for the 44th Corps Support Battalion from Fort Lewis, Wash.
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Tim Vakoc was treated at an Army field hospital in Baghdad and was then evacuated to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.
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Tim Vakoc received the Purple Heart in his room at Walter Reed Army Medical Center during a private ceremony limited to immediate family members, Army personnel, and then-US Senator Norm Coleman, who presented the medal.
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Tim Vakoc died on June 20,2009, at a nursing home in New Hope, Minnesota.
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Tim Vakoc's body was interred in Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minneapolis.
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On June 1,2007, Tim Vakoc received the 2007 Distinguished Alumnus Award from his alma mater, the Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity.