Cole Wixom
Sergeant, United States Army
December 17, 1994 – January 22, 2019
Age – 24
Bloomingdale, MI
Operation Enduring Freedom
1/36th Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Fort Bliss, TX
Died during a training exercise in Otero County, New Mexico
A native of West Michigan, Cpl. Cole Wixom grew up in Bloomingdale, Michigan and graduated from Bloomingdale High School in 2013. Cole graduated from Bloomingdale High School in 2013 and enlisted in the US Army in 2016. He served with the 1/36th Infantry Regiment 1st Stryker BCT and had completed one tour in Afghanistan. He had recently reenlisted and was set to be stationed in Tacoma, Washington this April.
Cole played baseball for Bloomingdale and was very involved in Allegan County 4-H where he showed dairy cows, goats and swine starting at age 4 all through high school. He loved the outdoors, and especially enjoyed traveling and hiking with brothers. Cole truly lived life with passion and will be deeply missed. He grew up playing baseball and showing cattle, goats and swine in 4-H.
On Jan. 22, 2019, Cpl. Cole Wixom was killed during a training exercise in Otero County, New Mexico. The crash involved two Interim Armored Vehicle (IAV) Strykers, an eight-wheeled, personnel carrier-infantry fighting vehicle used by the U.S. Army, on U.S. Route 54.
Cole’s parents said previously that their son had recently finished a tour in Afghanistan; he was a corporal and recently re-enlisted in the Army. We’re told he was planning to move to Washington state. said Wixom was good-natured with a good sense of humor.
Wixom graduated from Bloomingdale High School in 2013. Alan Farnquist, the athletic director at BHS, released a written statement about his time with Cole. “Cole was genuinely excited for others to succeed, and regularly talked about his brothers and their successes as opposed to his own,” Farnquist said. “We would talk baseball from time to time, and I remember him telling me that even though he and all of his brothers loved playing, he was most excited to see his youngest brother come up and play, because he was going to be the ‘best of us all.'”
His mother remembered him with the following tribute in 2020.
26 years ago this morning a treasure made his way into this cold world. He did not want to come, fought hard not to for hours, until HE decided and then he arrived with such gusto our Dr. (amazing and beloved Dr. Nash) had to catch him barehanded because he gave her no time to glove up after she returned to the room from calling her husband to tell him baby was stubborn and it did not look like she’d be home any time soon. That was Cole. He liked to inspire a reaction and control the show. And he always managed to say or do something that kept the rest around him guessing. That never changed. He had such a passion for adventure and fun and Cole sure managed to pack a lot of living in his short time here. So today, for the second year in a row, I will be placing a grave blanket at the cemetery and making the lasagna dinner with cheesecake for desert in ‘honor of’ instead of ‘for’ my sweet Christmastime child. Cole you brought me so much joy in your time here. Your passion, humor, kindness and bright spirit always made you the center and we sure do miss that. My heart will not be whole until we meet again.