Air Force Lt. Col. Ken Bourland was the only U.S. servicemember to perish in the Jan. 12 earthquake that struck Haiti. Today, we here at Joint Task Force Haiti honor and remember him this Memorial Day. Photo courtesy of Bourland family.
Trombitas is serving in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, as the commander of Joint Task Force-Haiti. He is also the commander of United States Army South in San Antonio, Texas.
Over the course of the last two months I have had the privilege of sharing with you each week my thoughts and observations on an array of topics as they deal with Joint Task Force Haiti and our operations in and around the Port-au-Prince area. I am immensely proud of the hard work and selfless service performed and displayed by all of our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and coast guardsmen during their efforts to provide aid and comfort to those Haitians directly impacted by Jan. 12’s devastating earthquake.
In my final blog from Haiti, I won’t attempt to capture in a few paragraphs everything this joint task force has accomplished since day one of Operation Unified Response. Instead, I ask you to join me on this day, Memorial Day, to reflect on the sacrifice made by our men and women in uniform. We have been a nation at war for nine years and during that time, as in many previous conflicts, our nation has spent its treasure and blood making others free – making their lives better.
This modern day holiday, celebrated on the last Monday of each May, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s service. There are competing arguments as to its exact origin, but in the immediate years following the end of the American Civil War, citizens of both the former Union and Confederate states observed their own versions of what they termed “Decoration Day” in honor of the soldiers from both sides who paid the ultimate sacrifice in the service of their nation. By the 1880s, the observance began to transform into an unofficial “Memorial Day” but did not become common until after World War I when it was observed to honor all American service members who perished in the service of their country. Finally, in 1967, “Memorial Day” was made the official name of the holiday by an act of Federal law and celebrated nationwide.
A shrine to a fallen Airman stands before a formation of reverent service members gathered at a memorial service held for Air Force Lt. Col. Ken Bourland at Logistic Support Area Dragon.Army photo by Spc. A.M. LaVey/XVIII Airborne Corps
This Memorial Day, we at Joint Task Force Haiti take pause to remember and to honor a fallen brother who died in the line of duty. At 4:52 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on Jan. 12, the earthquake that killed an estimated 230,000 people in Haiti also took one of our own. That evening, Birmingham, Ala. native Lt. Col. Ken Bourland, a decorated Air Force officer and pilot, was in his room at the Hotel Montana situated on the hills overlooking Port-au-Prince. Serving as the Caribbean desk officer for U.S. Southern Command, Ken was in town for an official meeting with Haitian defense and security counterparts. He had just emailed his wife, Peggy, one minute earlier and was getting ready to settle in for the evening. Then tragedy struck.
As news of the earthquake spread and as both governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations rushed to Haiti’s assistance, a massive operation was begun at the Hotel Montana to recover those known to have been buried in the rubble. Because of the tremendous amount of damage done and the resulting amount of rubble that had to be cleared, it was not until after three weeks of search and rescue operations that Bourland’s remains were recovered on Feb. 7. His remains were then flown to Dover Air Force Base, Del., where he was reunited with his family.
Peggy Bourland’s last request before her husband was recovered was that we, Joint Task Force Haiti, dedicate every day to helping the people of Haiti and complete the mission that he was here on. I want her and everyone that is reading this to know that the service members I have had the honor and privilege of leading over the last two months have worked tirelessly to see to it that her request is fulfilled. Although JTF-Haiti will officially stand down on June 1, the hard work and effort put forth by our service members to set conditions for Haiti’s future success does not end with us. Peggy’s request will continue to be carried on by those soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and coast guardsmen conducting New Horizons 2010 and, later, Continuing Promise 2010 which will build upon what JTF-Haiti has already set in place.
No words of mine on this day are capable of easing the pain of Ken’s loss to his family or friends. I am confident, however, that he is looking down on us from on high with a certain degree of pride and satisfaction in the efforts put forth by his brothers and sisters in arms. And those same brothers and sisters have not forgotten him; we all honor him today, Memorial Day… and continue the mission in his memory.
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