Monday, August 25, 1997
C-130 memorial remembers "tight-knit family"
By RICHARD ABENDROTH Special Writer
JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. - Of the Aug. 17, 1996, C-130 crash that
killed nine people, including eight from Dyess Air Force Base,
no signs remain on the long broad ridge that sweeps up to the
summit of Sheep Mountain outside Jackson, Wyo.
But a few miles away, just below an obscure hilltop well in
view of the windswept mountain, relatives of the dead members
of the Dyess plane's crew, and residents of this resort town planted
a sign on Sunday with the hope that it will remind visitors of
the accident.
As many as 150 mourners gathered to dedicate a memorial erected
by the Jackson Hole Jaycees, town of Jackson, Teton County and
seven other agencies which participated in the recovery of the
wreckage last year. The plaque lists the names of the eight members
of the crew of the C-130 - which carried transportation and support
equipment for a visit to the western Wyoming resort by President
Bill Clinton - and the one member of the U.S. Secret Service that
died in the crash.
The plaque bears the names of Capt. Kevin N. Earnest, Capt.
Kimberly Jo Wielhouwer, 2nd Lt. Benjamin T. Hall, Sr. Airman Rick
L. Merritt, Sr. Airman Michael R. York, Sr. Airman Billy R. Ogston,
Staff Sgt. Michael J. Smith, Airman Thomas Stevens and Aldo E.
Frascoia of the Secret Service.
The Dyess C-130 smashed into the side of Sheep Mountain shortly
after takeoff. The pilot failed to heed guidelines about how to
depart from the mountain-ringed valley using instruments. Those
guidelines recommend maintaining a southerly course of 188 degrees
until reaching an altitude of 11,000 feet. The C-130 apparently
headed nearly due east after takeoff.
Sunday's memorial was led by Sean Lowman, a member of the Jackson
Jaycees and chairman of this project. Sandra Key, supervisor of
the Bridger-Teton National Forest, which includes Sheep Mountain,
also offered a few words before prayers were delivered by the
Rev. Lynn Wright of St. John's Episcopal Church, the Rev. John
B. Scudder Jr., Wilson Baptist Church and the Rev. Stephen Hayman
of Harvest Rock Christian Fellowship.
Lt. Col. Brian Mills of Dyess thanked Lowman and his Jaycees,
as well as the citizens of Jackson Hole, for their sympathy and
support.
"I knew many of them (the victims)," said Mills.
"And had you known them, you would have been impressed."
Mills spoke of their unit at Dyess as a "tight-knit family
... dedicated to their work and with a can-do attitude. Remember
them personally for their energy, their love of life, and the
way they touched us all. They were doing what they loved to do:
flying and serving their country. We will remember you well. Mission
complete."
Lew Merletti, director of the U.S. Secret Service, followed
with a few words about 16-year Secret Service veteran Frascoia.
After a brief address by Jackson Town Councilman Scott Anderson
and the recitation of a short letter of condolence from President
Clinton, Lowman and U.S. Forest Ranger Chuck Jones pulled the
azure veil from the knee-high monument.
"I ask a personal favor from you," Lowman said. "Use
this plaque. And by that I mean come back here, tell others about
it, share the spirit."
Friends and family milled about and talked together afterwards
as they were unable to do last year when they traveled here after
receiving news of the disaster. The group then adjourned for a
picnic at the Teton Valley Ranch. Today, many are expected to
travel to the actual crash site, about 10,900 feet above sea level.
"We recovered his dogtags and his pocketknife," said
Glenn York, who traveled from Atlanta, Ga., with his wife, Pat.
Their son, Michael, was one of the victims of the crash. "That
means a lot to us."
Michael York had just qualified as a loadmaster and was aboard
his first official flight when it crashed.
"He left this world doing what he loved," said Glenn
York.
Tom Stevens, father of Airman Michael Stevens, said the memorial
helped heal his grief to a certain extent. The young airman had
turned 21 the day before the accident and was excited to be traveling
to New York City.
"Just to be out here to see this," Tom Stevens said,
pointing to the crowd, "it's incredible to see what everybody
has done."
Stevens and his wife, Judy, and youngest son, Mike, were able
to travel to the memorial thanks to the fund-raising efforts of
the Jackson Hole Jaycees.
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Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications
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