The family of a slain Canadian soldier had expected him to call home to wish his brother a happy birthday, on the same day his vehicle struck a roadside bomb.
Trooper Darryl Caswell died in the explosion and two other soldiers were injured.
"He was going to do all he could to call,'' stepmother Christine Caswell said Tuesday.
She added that Caswell, who was riding in the convoy's lead vehicle when the bomb detonated on Monday, always like to take the lead.
The slain soldier had six weeks left to serve before he was to return home to his family in Clarington, Ont.
Caswell, 25, of the Royal Canadian Dragoons, was based in CFB Petawawa.
"Trooper Caswell, a young Canadian, a great Canadian, died serving Canada and the people of Afghanistan," Col. Mike Cessford, deputy commander of Canadian forces in the country, said from Kandahar.
The incident took place about 40 kilometres north of Kandahar, an area described by officials as having a high concentration of Taliban militants.
The wounded soldiers sustained non-life threatening injuries and received medical treatment.
"I have visited both soldiers. They are in good shape, they are doing fine, and they should be back to duty soon," Cessford said Monday.
The group was part of a re-supplying mission to Canadian troops in a forward operating base in Kharghiz district, as part of Operation Adalat, when the roadside bomb detonated.
The convoy had been headed towards the northern reaches of Kandahar province on Monday when the bomb detonated.
"This is an area that is very remote, it's where Canadians were operating last year but pulled back to focus on efforts closer to the city where it's more urban and where the Taliban threat, at that time, was more urgent," CTV's Steve Chao reported Tuesday from Kandahar.
"In recent weeks, we understand, the Canadian military had intelligence suggesting that the Taliban were once again operating and gaining some strongholds in that area and so the Canadians were moving in on Operation Adalat to try and clear them."
Prime Minister Stephen Harper issued a statement following the death, offering his condolences to family and friends of Caswell.
"Without security there can be no development in Afghanistan, and thanks to soldiers like Trooper Caswell, we are making significant progress. He has left a valuable legacy and we will be forever grateful for the ultimate sacrifice he has made for our country," the statement read.
Cessford said the main priority now is to ensure that the wounded soldiers get the best possible care and "that Trooper Caswell is repatriated home to his family in the most dignified and respectful manner possible."
"Every loss of a soldier is a significant one."
Caswell was deployed with the Reconnaissance Squadron as part of the 2nd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment battle group.
Since 2002, 55 Canadian soldiers, two airmen and one diplomat have died in Afghanistan.
Before Monday, the last casualty was Master Cpl. Darrell Priede, 30, a military photographer. He died on May 30, when insurgents shot down his helicopter in Helmand province.
With a report from CTV's Steve Chao in Kandahar and files from The Canadian Press
