Last Thursday, the Department of Defense made the following announcement:
Tech. Sgt. Leslie D. Williams, 36, of Juneau, Alaska, died Jan. 25 due to a non-combat related incident at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 4th Maintenance Group, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C.
Tech Sgt. Williams was a husband, father, and beloved football and baseball coach. Here is a link to his holiday greeting to his team. Please follow me below the fold to learn more about his career and accomplishments.
~photo source
Tech Sgt. Williams served his country in the Air Force for 14 years and was promoted to the rank of Technical Sergeant, one of the most difficult ranks to achieve within the non-commissioned ranks of the Air Force. Here is a description of the role of a Technical Sergeant:
Technical Sergeant, or Tech Sergeant, is the sixth enlisted rank (E-6) in the U.S. Air Force, just above Staff Sergeant and below Master Sergeant. A technical sergeant is a non-commissioned officer and abbreviated as TSgt. Official terms of address are "Technical Sergeant" or "Sergeant", although many use "Tech Sergeant".
Within the enlisted Air Force, promotion to TSgt has historically been the second most difficult rank to achieve (only the rank of Senior Master Sergeant, capped by Federal law, has lower promotion rates) and is the most difficult promotion most career Air Force members achieve. A Staff Sergeant must have served at least five years with 23 months in grade to be considered for promotion to Technical Sergeant. It takes 10–12 years to normally reach this grade. Technical Sergeants provide mentorship to junior enlisted personnel while preparing themselves for promotion to Master Sergeant, the entrance rank of the senior non-commissioned grades.
The Juneau Empire reports that Tech Sgt. Williams was known as a mentor and the face of integrity in Goldsboro ,North Carolina, where he served as the coach of the Little Eagles. Drawing on a report from the News-Argus (behind a firewall), the Juneau Empire reports that:
His assistant, Tech. Sgt. Kevin Getchell, told the News-Argus how his friend’s work with the children was an inspiration and how much the kids loved him.
“He’s very upset. He cried all night. At 9 years old, it’s hard to understand that Les isn’t coming back,” said Angie Lancaster, whose son, Trent, was one of his players. “I mean, it’s hard for me. Those boys, they loved him. They respected him. He was so special to them.”
Retired Master Sgt. Brian Volk told the paper he was as much of an inspiration to the others off the field, saying, “Les was one of those guys that made everyone around him a better person. He forever made a positive impact on everyone he touched.”
Tech Sgt. Williams leaves behind a large and loving family, including his wife, Tonya DeMent Williams, his three children: Christian, Phoenix, and Allyson Williams, three sisters: Janet, Mary, and Jessica Williams, and a brother, Joshua Williams. His funeral is scheduled for tomorrow. He will be buried in North Carolina with full military honors.
Rest in peace, Tech Sgt. Leslie Williams. Thank you for your selfless service to our country and to the children of Goldsboro. Poppies are the universal symbols of remembrance. May we always remember Tech Sgt. Williams as a leader and a mentor, both inside and outside the military.
The purpose of the I Got the News Today series is to honor service members who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; its title is a reminder that almost every day a military family gets the terrible news about a loved one.
Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and is currently maintained by Sandy on Signal, monkeybiz, noweasels, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, joyful, roses, SisTwo, a girl in MI, Spam Nunn, JeNoCo, Janos Nation, True Blue Majority, CalNM, Wide Awake in KY, maggiejean, racheltracks, and Jax Dem.
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members chronicled here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.