- GBF is the Green Beret Foundation. It provides support to our wounded and our KIA families.
- Jen, the Executive Director, is an incredible asset. Her husband,
- is a GB who lost both his legs in combat.
If you only read one sentence make it the last in this message. UW
Pause to Respect the Man
who Laid his Life Down for
our Freedoms-
a Man Named Aaron Butler
By: Ms. Jen Paquette, GBF Executive Director
SSG Aaron Butler
We have endured another great sacrifice in our Special Forces Community and our Country. The news of the death of SSG Aaron Butler and the injuries sustained by his 11 teammates is a devastating blow to us all. When word was received, we at the GBF did what we have always done- we got to work. By now, we’ve got the processes and programs in place to respond and support. You could say we have too much experience. We proceeded to do our job for Aaron’s family, a new Gold Star family. We also supported and continue to support the surviving wounded Green Berets and their families that were impacted from that incident. To be effective, we know we must plan for the worse while hoping for the best. There is no other way. It is our way.
As always, without any thought, just like breathing, we pause to think about that fallen soldier. I ask you to do that now - pause for a moment and think about SSG Aaron Butler. He was only 27 years old. He could have been doing so many other things on that Wednesday of the week he sacrificed his life. He had a whole world out there. He decided this was the best way for him to make that world a better place. He made a deliberate decision and he chose to pursue the path to become a Green Beret. Aaron Butler and the 11 teammates with him were well aware of the dangers of their chosen profession as were their families.
If you research "Green Beret training" or "Special Forces" it only takes a second to understand that training to become a Green Beret is intense and grueling, both physically and emotionally.
Most young soldiers who pursue Special Forces training don’t make it. For those who do, the effort, the very hard fight for success leading up to the day they finally receive their green hat and “Long Tab” is unimaginable for most Americans. Yet for these newly minted Green Berets, the really hard stuff is just beginning.
I have an opportunity to sit in a unique position at the GBF. The lens I look through allows me to see a broad range of Green Berets and the Special Forces Community at large--- active duty Special Forces Groups, both National Guard Special Forces Groups, wounded Green Berets, separated from service Green Berets, retired Green Berets, new Green Berets and Green Berets that have served in wars past and Green Berets that will be deployed again…and again…and again.
There is a consistent theme in these men regardless of era. It is a very specific fire or drive characterized by the same shared conviction, principle, belief system, that causes them to make the choice to serve when they could be doing something—anything else. De Oppresso Liber is a living creed and the life they want.
There is not a single person involved with the Green Beret Foundation who would love nothing more then not to be needed. Right now, that is unrealistic and not in the cards for us. Green Berets are in over 100 countries right now. They sustain more then 60% of all Special Operation Forces casualties. Our work does not stop regardless of the political squabbles and other distracters of life. Our metrics will reflect that nothing has decreased for us. As a matter of fact, our work at the Foundation has increased substantially.
Together we won’t let SSG Aaron Butler’s name be forgotten or the other 172 post 9/11 Killed in Action Green Berets and Green Berets from previous wars and conflicts. We owe it to them and we owe it to their families.
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