He joined the U.S. Army shortly after emigrating from Guyana, then reached back to help his mother and siblings join him in America.
Years later, he rejoined the military after the 9/11 terror attacks, leaving a butcher’s job to help make his adopted America safe.
Yesterday, at a home in Hollis, Queens, family members who arrived from as far away as London and Iraq remembered Sgt. 1st Class Joseph A. McKay, who would have turned 52 on the Fourth of July, as a calm, caring man, who called home almost daily to inquire after loved ones.
McKay, of the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry Regiment, N.Y. Army National Guard, died from wounds suffered when his convoy was ambushed on Thursday in Afghanistan.
