Fallen Defenders honored at Minot

  • Published
  • By Kiley Swopes
  • Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs
MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D --  Airmen from the 5th Security Forces Squadron paid respect to their fallen Defenders, who paid the ultimate sacrifice, by establishing a Wall of Heroes mural in their honor.

The idea for the mural was spearheaded by Capt. Tyrone Bess, 5th SFS deputy commander, after seeing a photo of a similar mural at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz.

"Our Defenders in the 5th SFS are deployed in place and we wanted to ensure our Airmen know of the Defenders who have paid the ultimate sacrifice," said Bess. "Seventy percent of our unit is comprised of first term Airmen, and who have come in after September 11 (2001)."

He stated the fallen Defenders on the wall are all post 9/11 enlistees.

Efforts for the mural began in April 2012, when Bess quizzed one of his Airmen on who Airman 1st Class Elizabeth Jacobson was and why she was significant to Security Forces.

That Airman was Senior Airman Deja Foxworth, 5th SFS supply assistant. When Foxworth couldn't come up with the answer, Bess gave her one hour to do her research and report back.

"After telling him Jacobson's story, he told me there were eight more and to research who they were," Foxworth said. "That's when the project started. That's when I realized everything that happened and it weighed heavily on me."

As part of the Professional Development Guide, Airmen should have knowledge of their unit's history. For Security Forces especially, it includes knowing who Jacobson is.

Jacobson, who was assigned to the 17th Security Forces Squadron at Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas, was killed in 2005 while serving in Iraq. She was the first security forces member killed in conflict since the Vietnam War and the first female in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

For Foxworth, the impact of relating to her fallen Defenders did not come until she began to learn more about their stories and how they died.

"We have a lot of guys here who were friends with them, and some went to replace them---," Foxworth said. "It was more of a privilege to tell their story and to project those emotions on the wall."

The mural took nine months to complete and can be found in the 5th SFS building, building 547, by the Law Enforcement Desk.

"They made the ultimate sacrifice for our country," Foxworth said. "This is about the guys who died after September 11, so they knew that we were at war and they still came in selflessly. They did what they had to do---the ultimate sacrifice."

The Wall of Heroes honors nine fallen Defenders who died after September 11, 2001.

The Security Forces Defenders on the Wall of Heroes include:

Airman 1st Class Elizabeth Jacobson, 17th Security Force Squadron, Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas, 2005, Iraq; Tech. Sgt. Jason Norton, 3rd Security Forces Squadron, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, 2006, Iraq; Staff Sgt. Brian McElroy, 3rd Security Forces Squadron, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, 2006, Iraq; Airman 1st Class Leebenard Chavis, 824th Security Forces Squadron, Moody Air Force Base, Ga, 2006, Iraq; Staff Sgt. John Self, 314th Security Force Squadron, Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark. 2007, Iraq; Senior Airman Jason Nathan. 48th Security Forces Squadron, RAF Lakenheath, England, 2007, Iraq; Staff Sgt. Travis Griffin, 377th Security Forces Squadron, Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., 2008, Iraq; 1st Lieutenant Joseph Helton Jr., 6th Security Forces Squadron, MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., 2009, Iraq; Senior Airman Nicholas Alden, 48th Security Forces, RAF Lakenheath, England, 2011, Germany