Honoree: Aaron D. White

Hometown: Shawnee, OK
Branch of Service: Marine Corps
Rank: Staff Sergeant
Player: Stephen Campbell Jr
Staff Sergeant Aaron White, 27, of Shawnee, Oklahoma, was assigned to Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 364, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California. On May 19, 2003, SSgt White was killed when a CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter crash shortly after takeoff in the Shatt al Hilah Canal in Iraq. It had been on a resupply mission in support of civil-military operations.
SSgt White grew up in a small town in rural Oklahoma, where he rode horses and learned to drive on back roads. He was a volunteer firefighter in Sasakwa before he could even drive and would go out on calls with his dad. The family moved to a larger town, Shawnee, where he graduated in 1994 from high school and soon afterward went into the military.
SSgt White was a hard worker and a people person - he always wanted to help. “I think he had the calling to serve. He had to serve somebody, serve our country, serve the people,” his mother, Karen White said. “He needed the challenge the Marine Corps would give him.”
He is survived by his wife, Michele and daughter, Brianna.