Thunderbolts honor fellow Airman

  • Published
  • By Airman David Owsianka
  • 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  More than 80 Luke Air Force Base members honored a fellow Airman who lost his life while in Iraq by participating in the fallen warrior challenge Aug. 12 at the Warrior Training Center.

1st Lt. Joseph Helton died Sept. 8, 2009, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.

The loss of Helton didn't just affect his family members; the tragic event affected his fellow Airmen as well.

"I had the privilege of serving alongside Helton in Iraq from November 2008 until that fatal day in 2009," said Master Sgt. Shadd McKee, 56th Security Forces Squadron superintendant of operations. "This event will be forever etched in my mind, for that day we lost an incredible person and leader, and also lost a friend."

Helton was an incredible company grade officer and a dedicated athlete and competitor, McKee said.

During Helton's time in defender officer training school, he won the Top Gun and physical training awards and was voted by his peers as most likely to one day become the career field director of security forces.

The Company Grade Officer Council used the fallen warrior physical fitness challenge in Helton's honor. The funds raised will go to help Airmen.

The challenge workout consisted of two rounds of running 800-meters, 30 repetitions of dumbbell squat cleans and 30 burpees.

"Fitness has become a focal point for the Air Force," said 2nd Lt. Tyner Apt, 56th Logistics Readiness Squadron Readiness section officer-in-charge and CGOC vice president. "We wanted to provide an event where people could have fun with fitness while honoring heroes of the past and present."

For some Air Force members fitness is about pushing personal limits. The fallen warrior challenge gave Air Force individuals the chance to do just that.

Helton had a saying 'don't be a weak sauce,' McKee said. "I didn't understand the saying prior to him passing, but I do now. To me this means if you're going to do something give it your all, and that's exactly how he lived his life.

"We should remember those who paved the way before us and not take anything for granted because, in the end, freedom isn't free," he said.