Brian Eisch is a veteran military personnel of the US Army who retired as a Master Sergeant in the United States Army; after serving the country for 20 years. Brian Eisch’s life and his family’s life was completely changed when he was deployed to Afghanistan from Fort Drum in 2010 where he lost his left leg in an ambush.
Wiki/Biography
Brian Eisch was born in 1974 (age 46 years; as in 2020) in Hortonville, Wisconsin, United States. After attending Shiocton High School (1980-1990) in Wisconsin, Brian passed high school from Hortonville High School in 1993. In 1994, he moved to Texas where he studied General AAS at Central Texas College. In 1997, Brian moved to Wahiawa, Hawaii, where his oldest son Issac was born, and after spending a year there, he moved to Fayetteville, North Carolina in 1998 where he stayed till 2001.
Brian Eisch with Isaac James Eisch at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii in 1998
In 2001, he moved to Saint Robert, Missouri where his youngest son, Joseph ‘Joey’ was born. After getting divorced from his first wife, he moved to Hohenfels, Bayern, Germany where he also brought his elder son, Issac, along with him. In 2007, Brian Eisch moved to La Crosse in Wisconsin where he trained college students at the University of Wisconsin. In 2009, Brian and his family moved to New York. The family briefly lived in Wisconsin after Brian was deployed to Afghanistan in 2010. In 2011, Brian and his family moved to Lacona in New York. After serving the United States Army for twenty years, Brian Eisch retired in 2012.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 8″
Hair Color: Dark Brown
Eye Color: Dark Brown
Family & Ethnicity
Brian Eisch belongs to a white American family.
Parents & Siblings
There is not much information about his parents. He has two brothers – Shawn (a state water conservation officer) who lives in Wautoma, a two-stoplight town in central Wisconsin, and Kevin Eisch who works at Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, Wisconsin Resource Center and State of Wisconsin Department of Corrections.
Brian Eisch With His Wife Maria, two sons, and his brother Shawn Eisch
Brian Eisch’s Brother Kevin Eisch
Brian has a twin sister named Brenda Eisch Van Sambeek.
Brian Eisch’s Twin Sister Brenda
Relationships, Wife & Children
Brian Eisch divorced his first wife in 2004. He has two sons with his first wife. After the divorce, he took custody of his two sons – Issac and Joseph ‘Joey.’
Brian Eisch With His Oldest Son Issac
Brian Eisch With His Youngest Son Joey
On May 30, 2015, he got married to Maria Eisch who works at Ontario Health & Fitness Center.
Brian Eisch With His Wife Maria Eisch
Career
Biran Eisch joined the United States Army in 1992 as an Airborne Ranger in the infantry.
Brian Eisch in Ranger School
From 1994 to 1997, he served in the infantry at E-52 INF LRS ABN. From 2007 to 2009, Brian served as ROTC Instructor at the University of Wisconsin at La Crosse where he trained college students to become the future Officers in the United States Army. From July 2009 to November 2010, Brian served as a Platoon Sergeant in the United States Army. From July 2009 to November 2010, he served as a Platoon Sergeant at Watertown-Fort Drum, New York.
Brian Eisch in the US Army Uniform
In November 2010, Brian Eisch was deployed to Afghanistan with the 10th Mountain Division where he lost his left leg in an ambush.
Brian Eisch Cuddling a Dog in Afghanistan
On November 10, 2011, Brian Eisch became the Master Sergeant in the United States Army. From February 2011 to August 2012, Brian was a wounded warrior at warrior transition unit Fort Drum, New York; before getting retired.
Soldiering and Parenting
After getting divorced from his first wife in 2004, Brian Eisch became the single father of two sons and managed his parental responsibilities. Brian Eisch is, in fact, a classic example of finding a balance between soldering and parenting. In an interview, he revealed that his two sons were the two most significant motivators in his life, he said,
I look at my boys and I see the things they do, they are my biggest support channel and they look up to me.”
Brian Eisch With His Sons
After Sergeant First Class Brian Eisch was deployed to Afghanistan, his two sons were forced to leave their home in upstate New York to go live with their uncle, Shawn Eisch, in Wautoma, Wisconsin where they had to adapt to a new environment and new school. At that time, Brian’s oldest son, Issac was 12 while his youngest son, Joey was 8.
Brian Eisch’s Sons Issac (right) and Joey (left) at their uncle’s home in Wisconsin
While making adjustments to live in their uncle’s home in Wisconsin, Joey got into fistfights at his new school, and Issac rebelled against their uncle’s rules. In the absence of his father, Joey’s performance was affected in school, and he was even suspended from school after he got into fistfights at his new school.
Brian Eisch’s Youngest Son Joey Falls Asleep in His Class
In September 2010, Brian Eishc returned home for mid-tour leave to be with his sons.
Brian Eisch and his sons after his return from Afghanistan in September 2010
During his mid-tour leave, Brian, along with his sons, spent the first nights in hotels, went fishing, visited an amusement park, and traveled to New York City, where they saw Times Square and the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, and before a homecoming, they also had a stopover at a gas station for beverages and supplies.
Brian Eisch and his sons at a gas station during Brian’s mid-tour leave in September 2010
The Eisch family had a dinner party that night. On the last night of his two weeks mid-tour leave, Brian slept together with his sons.
Brian Eisch and his sons before his flight departs from Appleton in Wisconsin
Deployment to Afghanistan: A Life-Changing Event
While talking about his deployment to Afghanistan in 2010 with the 10th Mountain Division, Brian Eisch says,
If you remember Obama’s surge when he was sending the 30,000 troops, that was my deployment. Our mission over there in Afghanistan was to teach, coach, and mentor the Afghan police.”
Brian Eisch in Afghanistan
Within a few days of his deployment to Afghanistan, he lost his left leg while saving the life of an Afghan policeman during a clear mission in the Kunduz province of Afghanistan; an incident that brought Brian’s 20-year army career to an end. While talking about the incident, he recalls,
I was in the Kunduz province in Afghanistan, it was Nov. 3, 2010, and I was working with the Afghan Police on a patrol we called, ‘a deliberate clear.’ I look and I see an Afghan policeman out in the field, so I tell the Afghan police, ‘You have a man down over there you need to go get him,’ and they tell me no, tell me that they aren’t going to go after him, not going to rescue their man down. So I went to get him, didn’t even think twice about it, you don’t leave a man behind, you don’t leave an ally behind, so we swung the vehicle around to go get the wounded Afghan guy and then get the hell out of there. We put the vehicle between us and the bad guys, and I climb out to grab the guy but when I get there I find that the guy is way too injured to just grab and throw in the vehicle, he was bleeding bad, going to bleed to death right there, so I start to throw a tourniquet on him…Then, suddenly I hear this snap, snap, snap then my legs start burning then it starts feeling like a chainsaw was hacking my legs, a Taliban sniper with an automatic weapon saw what we were doing, was waiting for us and shot under the vehicle and got me.”
Brian Eisch With an Afghan Policeman in Afghanistan
Lost His Son
In July 2015, Brian Eisch lost his youngest son, Joseph ‘Joey,’ in a road accident. It was a Friday afternoon when a friend called the U.S. Army Master Sgt. Brian Eisch and told him that his son had been hurt in an accident, and Eisch thought the caller was joking. Brian couldn’t believe the news; as just a few minutes before, his son had pedaled away from the family’s Oswego County home in New York. Reportedly, when Joey asked his parents to go for a bike ride, they had urged him to ride carefully. While talking about it, Brian Eisch says,
The last words out of our mouth were, ‘We love you, buddy.”
According to the Oswego County Sheriff’s Office, around 12:41 pm, Joey was hit while riding his bike west on county Route 15, near Van Auken Road. Soon, he was rushed to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse, where he later died on July 24, 2015. The Oswego County Sheriff’s Office identified the driver of the 2004 Chevrolet pickup that hit Joey as 71-year-old Ronald Blair of Kirkville. Following Joey’s death, it took years to Brian Eisch to come out of trauma. In an interview, while talking about his son Joey, Brian broke down and said,
I wish I could trade places with him.”
Awards & Honors
When he joined the Army in 1992, he competed in and won five out of six Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) of the year awards. Brian was also inducted into the prestigious Audie Murphy Club. After his retirement in 2012, Brian Eisch was awarded the Purple Heart. He was also awarded a Bronze Star for Valor.
Facts/Trivia
- He also served as a military science instructor for the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program at the University of Wisconsin at La Crosse (2007-2009).
- Brian follows a non-vegetarian diet and is often spotted consuming alcoholic beverages at various occasions.
Brian Eisch at a dinner party with his family and friends
- After three or four surgeries, his left leg was finally amputated.
Brian Eisch’s Amputated Leg
- After the loss of his son, Joey, he founded a memorial on Joey’s name in New York.
Joey Eisch Memorial
- After a previous divorce, the loss of a leg, and the loss of his son, Brian Eisch didn’t lose hope and turned to bass fishing to cope with his losses. While talking about his fishing experience, Brian says,
My happiness has been fishing. I go bass fishing, I do tournament bass fishing. When I’m fishing, I’m looking around I’m like ‘wow.’ And I always see a bald eagle, and say hi to Joey.”
Brian Eisch Bass Fishing
- While talking about his military career and his new venture, i.e., bass fishing, he says,
I really miss the Army, never thought my career would end like it did, I was real, I mean REAL competitive in the military but now I can translate my military competitiveness to bass fishing. My goal is to be a professional bass angler.”
- When Brian was deployed in Afghanistan, he started planning to buy a new Bass Catboat. While talking about it he says,
When I was in Afghanistan I was working on buying a new Bass Cat boat, but then, you know, I got shot, and everything changed, you know…”
- After the tragic incident in Afghanistan in which he lost his leg, Brian got $25,000 as Traumatic Event Coverage and with this money, he fulfilled his long-awaited desire tot buy a Bass Catboat. Brian says,
I had insurance, Traumatic Event Coverage and I got $25,000 so I used that money to go out and buy myself a used truck, and I bought myself a used bass boat.”
Brian Eisch in a Bass Catboat
- Brian is a sports enthusiast and loves to watch Baseball matches.
Brian Eisch and His Wife Maria Wearing Baseball Jersy
- He is a compassionate animal lover and an advocate of animal rights.
Brian Eisch Playing With a Dog
- The New York Times military documentary film titled “Father Soldier Son” is based on Brian Eisch’s life. Directed by Leslye Davis and Catrin Einhorn, the film was premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 15, 2020, and it was released on Netflix on June 19, 2020.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education