FOX CROSSING, Wis. (WFRV) – “Dan was a protective, strong, do the right thing kind of guy,” recalled Fox Crossing’s Jill Fritsch.
Her husband, the late Daniel Fritsch, served in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. He joined the army right out of high school, and his widow says he saw the army as his family. The soldiers were his brothers, and that continued until the day he died.
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“He saw that as a place that would give him direction,” Jill told Local 5’s Samantha Petters. “And the strength to be around people doing the right thing.”
Daniel was an ammo specialist. But Jill says his proudest achievement was becoming a sergeant first class before his retirement in 2021. Everything changed in 2023.
“His behavior became odd,” she recalled. “He was doing things like not closing the garage door or not locking the front door. Now, to some people, that might be okay; that’s not a big deal. But for my husband, that’s a big big deal.”
So Jill called for a buddy check on Daniel and eventually took him in for a cat scan.
The doctors said it was brain cancer. They removed the tumor, and Daniel started chemo and radiation as soon as possible. By July, the tumor had grown back into stage four.
“The beginning of August is when we were in the hospital, and they had told us he only had two weeks, so he was sent home to hospice.”
Throughout that time, lots of family and friends came to visit. During those visits with his army buddies, Jill learned just how much Daniel did for his fellow soldiers.
“I found out that he was very instrumental with many soldiers to get them through the tough stuff.”
Jill recalls how, at 50, Daniel would be running next to the guys, doing their PT tests when they were 20.
“It was really touching to hear those stories from those soldiers.”
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Daniel lies next to his uncle today at the Oak Hill Cemetery in Neenah. Jill has spearheaded the effort to get a permanent memorial to the Veterans lost in the War on Terror.
“I love him. I honor him. I want him to be remembered.”
