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JB MDL 1st Sergeant nominated for Spirit of Hope award

  • Published
  • By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Elizabeth Burke
KABUL --  Master Sgt. Bubba G. V. Beason, of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., is the 305th Maintenance Squadron, 305th Air Mobility Wing, Air Mobility Command's 2010 nominee for the Spirit of Hope Award. He is first sergeant for the 438th Air Expeditionary Wing, Combined Air Power Transition Force, in Kabul, Afghanistan.

"He is the first Air Force first sergeant to be assigned to CAPTF and what that means to the Air Force is he is a person who is solely dedicated to quality of life and caring for Airmen. It is nice to have someone who is solely focused on people and he is the perfect guy for it because he has a great heart," said Chief Master Sgt. Robert Brooks, 438th AEW command chief.

The Spirit of Hope award is presented annually to a select few men and women of the United States armed forces, active duty and civilian personnel whose patriotism and service reflect that of the late Bob Hope. The Spirit of Hope awards will be presented in Washington, D.C. in the fall of 2010.

Since March 2007, Beason has organized and participated in five events: The 2007 60th anniversary of the Air Force Ruck March, in honor of the Gold Star Mothers; the 2008 Bataan Memorial Death March while on deployment to Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar; the 2008 and 2009 McGuire Air Force Base Gold Star Mothers' Ruck March; and the 2009 New Jersey Run for the Fallen, honoring servicemen and women who died in OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM and OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM, both of which are now annual events. Beason also ran the last 10 kilometers of the 2008 Run for the Fallen, a coast- to-coast relay run honoring servicemen and women who died in OIF, which started in Fort Irwin, Calif. and ended in Arlington National Cemetery, Washington, D.C.

Last year he was chosen as the 2009 USO Service member of the Year and the 2009 Chevy Everyday American Hero due to his involvement in these events. When asked about his Spirit of Hope nomination, Beason said, "I don't feel worthy of it because there are a lot of other people out there that do more things than me. It's an honor to get nominated for it, but I just don't feel worthy of it."

Beason found his calling March 29, 2007. A friend,Tech. Sgt. Mike Vendzules, urged him he participated in the Bataan Memorial Death March in White Sands, N.M. The Death March is a 26.2 mile ruck march through desert terrain, symbolizing the march American and Philippine soldiers endured at the hands of the Japanese in World War II.
 
A chance meeting with Janice Bridges brought him face to face with his cause in life.

Beason and Bridges struck up a conversation prior to the event. It was during this conversation he discovered Janice Bridges was a Gold Star Mother. A Gold Star Mother is a mother that has lost a son or daughter while in defense of the country. In November 2006, just four months earlier, her son Michael Paul Bridges was killed while serving in Iraq. Beason didn't know what to say -- he was speechless for the first time in his life.

Michael Paul Bridges turned down a full scholarship to study engineering at the University of Alabama in order to join the Army after 9/11. He lost 117 pounds in one year to join the Army.

Beason asked Bridges for something of Paul's to carry with him so that when the march got tough, he would know what he was experiencing was nothing compared to her suffering. The morning of the event she handed him the very watch that Paul was wearing when he was killed in Iraq. When the march got tough, he looked down at Paul's watch and found the strength to keep going.

While on vacation with his family, he came up with the idea of the New Jersy Run for the Fallen, honoring the 122 fallen servicemen and women from New Jersey in OIF and OEF. He contacted New Jersey President of Gold Star Mother Judy Tapper, mother of David Tapper, a Navy SEAL who was killed in Afghanistan in 2003. Beason organized the 140-mile run which started in Cape May, N.J. and finished at the Veteran's Memorial in Holmdel, N.J.

A team of 24 runners ran two-person relay teams for six or 12-mile increments, stopping each mile to place a flag for each service member. Beason received incredible support from the local community for organizing the event. It took the team two days to finish the run. The team logged 84 miles the first day and 56 the second.

"Before my daddy died, he told me that one day I will find a cause in life and I needed to run with it," Beason said, "One of my friends told me that I was actually running for the Gold Star Moms; at that point I looked up at my daddy and realized what he meant."

The night before Beason was honored at the 2009 Country Music Awards. Janice Bridges flew to Nashville, Tenn. to give him the same watch he wore that day in March 2007.

"Paul is the reason my life changed," Beason said. "He is the reason I am here today."

Now that Beason is deployed to Afghanistan, he continues his dedication to the memory of fallen servicemen and women. March 21, the same day of the Bataan Memorial Death March in White Sands, Beason ran/walked 26.2 miles on the Afghan National Army Air Corps base in Kabul, Afghanistan. He dedicated each mile to a fallen service member. It is no mistake that his mid-deployment leave fall in September. While on leave,  so he will particiapte in the 2010 New Jersey Run for the Fallen.

Beason commits himself to doing something to honor the fallen of OEF. He has been running every day since he arrived in Afghanistan. He runs four miles a day, one mile for every serviceman and woman killed during OEF.  Beason shared his thoughts in an email to Gold Star Mother's National President Ruth Stonesifer, whose son Kris was killed Afghanistan in Oct. 2001,

"Mrs. Ruth, it's been a while since we have spoken but I still think of you and Kris often,"  Beason said. "I wanted to share something with you that I am doing over here in Afghanistan. Since I will be here for almost 11 more months, I will run a mile for each Soldier, Sailor, Airmen, Marine and Coast Guardsman killed in Operation Enduring Freedom. Currently there are 1,021 fallen heroes since Oct. 10, 2001. As a career serviceman I feel it is my duty to recognize my fallen brothers and sisters. Yes the number is daunting, but it's something I have to do."