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Name: Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew W. Harvell
Age: 26
From: Long Beach, CA
Assigned to 24th Special Tactics Squadron, Pope Field, N.C.
Incident: Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew W. Harvell
died Aug. 6 in Wardak province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when the CH-47 Chinook helicopter in which he was riding was shot down.
Friends have &lsquoheavy hearts&rsquo after airmen deaths
By David Larter
Staff writer
One was a medic who abandoned plans to become a nurse anesthetist when he saw a recruiting ad for special operations. Another was a high school football player and wrestler who knew how to make people laugh. The third had a &ldquoterrier-type&rdquo mentality, according to his football coach.
All three were among the Air Force&rsquos elite &mdash assigned to the 24th Special Tactics Squadron at Pope Field, N.C. And all three died Aug. 6, when the Taliban presumably shot down their Chinook helicopter during a night raid with soldiers and Navy SEALs.
&ldquoThis crash leaves us in AFSOC with heavy hearts,&rdquo said Lt. Gen. Eric Fiel, commander of Air Force Special Operations Command.
Friends remembered Tech. Sgts. John Brown and Daniel Zerbe, both pararescuemen, and Staff Sgt. Andy Harvell, a combat controller, as lifelong athletes who were proud of their jobs.
Brown, 33, grew up in Siloam Springs, Ark. The Pentagon listed his hometown as Tallahassee, Fla.
His mother, Elizabeth Newlun, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview that she was maintaining her composure so she could tell people about her son.
&ldquoI think I&rsquom internally very upset. But at the same time, I&rsquom so very proud of my son,&rdquo Newlun said. &ldquoI want to make sure that everyone knows that he&rsquos a hero. I can fall apart later.&rdquo
Brown attended John Brown University with plans of becoming a nurse anesthetist but joined the military after seeing a video about special operations units. He was also an athlete, Newlun said. He swam and played basketball.
&ldquoHe just loved anything physical, anything athletic,&rdquo she said. &ldquoIf I wanted to have a conversation with him that was serious, I would have to shoot baskets with him. There&rsquos nothing athletic about me, but I realized that you have to get into other people&rsquos comfort zone to get information.&rdquo
An Arkansas state representative and friend of Brown&rsquos, Jon Woods, also remembered his athleticism.
&ldquoWhen you think of what the ideal model of a soldier would be, he would be it,&rdquo Woods told AP. &ldquoHe could run all day. We lived down the street from each other and spent time together after school and hung out. Even if we had a long day of practice, he would put on his sneakers and run after practice.&rdquo
Zerbe, 28, grew up in York, Pa., and played for Red Lion Area High School&rsquos football and wrestling teams.
His coach, George Shue, told The (Harrisburg) Patriot-News that Zerbe was a team player. He said he saw Zerbe about three years ago, and though he didn&rsquot talk a lot about what he did for the Air Force, he was proud of his job saving lives.
&ldquoHe was proud of what he was doing,&rdquo Shue told The Patriot-News. &ldquoI know he was doing what he wanted to be doing. I hope something we taught him about being a team player carried on to his life&rsquos mission.&rdquo
Zerbe&rsquos friends and acquaintances took to Facebook to share memories.
One friend said Zerbe&rsquos good attitude was infectious.
&ldquoI still remember the days of you goofing around,&rdquo the friend wrote. &ldquoThe smile you had that lit up a room and how you always made people laugh. Dan you are a true hero: my hero.&rdquo
Others wrote about his ability to cheer up friends.
&ldquoDan, you always made me laugh when I wanted to cry,&rdquo a friend wrote. &ldquoThat, I&rsquoll always remember. You were sweet, kind and absolutely funny.&rdquo
Harvell, 26, grew up in Long Beach, Calif. He lived with his wife and two small children in North Carolina, near Pope Field, according to the Los Angeles NBC affiliate.
His football coach at Miliken High School in California remembered Harvell as having the &ldquoheart of a lion&rdquo and said he brought a &ldquoterrier-type mentality&rdquo with him to every game.
&ldquoHe had to because he was too small, too slow, but not when you took into account his heart,&rdquo Kurt Diego told KNBC-TV. &ldquoIt didn&rsquot surprise me at all when he chose to go into the military. He was always a guy that gave every ounce of whatever he had.&rdquo
Harvell&rsquos older brother, Staff Sgt. Sean Harvell, also is a combat controller and received two Silver Stars last year for actions in Helmand province, Afghanistan.
Died: August 6, 2011
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Prayers & Condolences For:
Andrew W. Harvell
BY John on Sep 02, 2011 | |  | May the grace of God, the love of Jesus, and the peace of the Holy Spirit be with you and your family forever.
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