Remembering their own...

  • Published
  • By Mary Lou Gorny
  • Hilltop Times editor
HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah --  Bagpipes wailed, a wreath was posted and roses laid in remembrance of military security officers and Office of Special Investigations personnel who lost their lives while in the service of their country at a ceremony May 14 held in the Base Chapel Annex.

Maj. John J. Dumont III, 75th Security Forces Squadron commander, noted that in 1962 President John F. Kennedy established National Police Week in a joint resolution with Congress to pay special tribute to those officers who had lost their lives while working to protect others.

He remembered a fellow officer, 1st Lt. Joseph D. Helton, who lost his life while in Iraq as a member of the 6th Security Forces Squadron out of McDill Air Force Base, Tampa, Fla. Helton had volunteered to stay and participate in a key transition team so others who had been deployed three or four times wouldn't have to come back to the Area of Responsibility. On Sept. 8, 2009, he was killed on a mission in Baghdad by an Improvised Explosive Device. At a ceremony soon afterwards, he was posthumously awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

Dumont said, "His commander, Joe Engelbright made the following comments: 'We know that people join the fight for different reasons. Some join for a sense of service, some join to be part of something special and some for pride in their nation. Joe joined to fight for all three.'"

"This American hero chose to put service to country and others over service to himself," Dumont noted. "However it should be understated that all over the United States there are many other Joe Heltons. These men and women put their lives on the line each and every day to protect others. Their service and sacrifice should not be forgotten."

Chief Tom Ross, Bountiful Police Department, Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Nicholas Brinker and Lt. Garrett Atkin Layton Police Department laid roses at the wreath.