The wife of a 22-year-old soldier who died while abroad on an exercise has paid tribute to the “kind-hearted” and “adored” dad-of-two.

Gillingham-born Keane Smirthwaite, a Lance Corporal in the Army, passed away while in Tallinn, Estonia, on February 17.

His wife Danielle Smirthwaite said: “Keane was a kind-hearted, generous nerd of a man. He was funny, he had an amazing sense of humour and was always respectful to whoever he met.

“Keane adored the family we created together and loved the families he came from. He was an amazing dada and would do anything for our little family.

“Our families are so proud of the person he was and the things he accomplished. He was an only child and the shine in his parents' eyes, they will forever be proud of the life he lived and forever be broken that he is no longer here.

“He was so excited to be travelling abroad with work, one of the many reasons he joined the armed forces.

“Even though our ‘see you soon’ was hard, we were both counting down the days until he was back home.

“Unfortunately, neither of us knew that would be the last time we would see one another face to face.”

Danielle explained how Keane was excited to grow their family and meet his daughter.

She added: “He was excited to live the life we had planned together and see our children grow and hopefully their children one day.

“Now every day I try to live for him, I try to make the days worth it and make sure our children know their daddy, even if it has to be through stories and pictures.

“I miss him every day, we all do. Each one of us would do anything to have him back.

“I will always remember his half smile, dark humour and tall skinniness. I will always remember the love he had and the shy 15-year-old that turned into such an outgoing man.

“He will always be the love of my life and I am forever grateful for the two beautiful children he has given me.”

Keane and Danielle met while at Brompton Academy in Gillingham, when they were both 15 years old and completed both their GCSEs and A-levels together before he went on basic training.

The pair sent letters to each other while he was away and Danielle said the day he passed out of training was a proud day for their family.

When the West Ham fan returned, the school sweethearts got engaged in 2019 but were only married for less than a year before he died.

They have two children together – Haydn, two, and Penelope, who was born in June.

“He loved spending time with Haydn,” Danielle added. “They really did have a bond like no other. My heart aches that I will never get to see him like that with our daughter.”

To help cover the cost of Keane’s funeral flowers and wake, the mum-of-two set up a fundraising page which raised more than £4,500.

Danielle added: “I am so thankful to everyone who donated towards the costs. I never expected it to reach the amount it did.

“I just wanted to make sure he got the send-off he deserved. I wish I could physically say thank you to everyone and express how grateful I am for their generosity.

“It proved to me what an impact Keane had on so many people, that they were all willing to help even during a cost-of-living crisis.”

Coroner Katrina Hepburn opened an inquest into the 22-year-old’s death at County Hall, in Maidstone, on Friday (July 14).

The court heard how Keane was found dead in a room at the Raddison Collection Hotel, in Tallinn, Estonia, on February 17.

Ms Hepburn said there were “circumstances for investigation” and adjourned the full inquest to be heard on September 12 at Oakwood House in Maidstone.