TUMILSON, Jon T. 1976-2011
TUMILSON
Posted By: County Coordinator
Date: 8/15/2011 at 13:06:52
Petty Officer Jon T. Tumilson
#1:
ROCKFORD, IOWA - Petty Officer Jon T. Tumilson, 35, a native of Rockford, died Saturday, Aug. 6, 2011, while conducting special operations combat in Afghanistan.
Funeral services will be held 10 a.m. Friday, Aug. 19, at the Rudd-Rockford-Marble Rock Community School gymnasium. Burial will be in Riverside Cemetery at Rockford.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Frogman238 Memorial Fund, First Security Bank and Trust, Rockford, Iowa, 641-756-3361.
Jon was born July 1, 1976, at Osage. He joined the U.S. Navy on July 17, 1995, following graduation from the Rudd-Rockford-Marble Rock Community School. He graduated from Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Illinois, in September 1995. He completed Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL School, Coronado, Calif., in April 2002. He served in three west-coast based Special Warfare units and in two east-coast based Special Warfare units.
Petty Officer Tumilson was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Defense Meritorious Service Medal. His other awards include the Purple Heart, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, Presidential Unit Citation, Combat Action Ribbon, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and four Sea Service Deployment Ribbons, and Rifle Expert and Pistol Expert Medals.
He deployed on multiple deployments to include Afghanistan and Iraq.
He is survived by his parents, George and Kathleen Tumilson, of Rockford; two sisters, Kristie Pohlman (Brad Hartgraves), of Cedar Rapids, and Joy (Scott) McMeekan, of Taylor Ridge, Ill; six nieces and nephews: Kobey Pohlman, Kamryn Pohlman, Kelsi McMeekan, Kaitlyn Pohlman, Sydney McMeekan, Isabella McMeekan; 21 aunts, uncles and cousins; and his trusted canine friend, Hawkeye.
Petty Officer Tumilson was preceded in death by his paternal grandparents, Thomas and Nell Tumilson; maternal grandparents, John and Leona Jacobs; a friend, Kevin Reiter, and his Brothers in Arms.
The Hauser Funeral Home, 641-228-2323, in Charles City, is in charge of arrangements.
Online condolences may be left for the family at www.hauserfh.com .[ Globe Gazette online, August 15, 2011 ]
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#2:
ROCKFORD, Iowa (AP) — When Jon Tumilson set his mind to something, he achieved it, becoming a Navy SEAL despite his battered knees and competing in endurance races to prepare for the arduous missions he'd be sent on, neighbors and former schoolmates said.
Tumilson was a hero to some in his hometown of Rockford even before he and 29 other Americans died Saturday in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan during a mission to help fellow troops who had come under fire.
Tumilson's father, George Tumilson, confirmed to The Des Moines Register that his son was among those killed in the crash. He declined to comment further, and the family declined to comment to The Associated Press.
Neighbors, though, said they were heartbroken for the family, and said the town had lost one of its finest.
Jan Stowe told The Des Moines Register that the 35-year-old Tumilson "was going to be a Navy SEAL since I can't remember when."
"He's like a hero to everyone here," Stowe said.
Another neighbor, Mark Biggs, told the Mason City Globe Gazette that those who knew Tumilson were shocked by his death.
Said Biggs: "You just never thought it would happen to Jon. He's done so many dangerous things."
Tumilson had been a wrestler in high school, and Stowe said Tumilson competed in marathons and triathlons as part of his preparation for the dangerous and often arduous missions he would face with the SEALS.
"When he did something, he put his all into it," said Stowe.
A friend of Tumilson's, Justin Schriever, told the Globe Gazette that Tumilson made up his mind late in high school to compete for a spot on the elite SEALS.
"Hell, while training they were going to kick him out because his knees were all battered up," Schriever said. "He wouldn't let them.
"He was a die-hard at everything," Schriever said. "He'd always go the extra mile on everything. He wouldn't let anything stop him from accomplishing something."
Biggs said Tumilson loved his country.
"He was willing to do whatever it took. He wanted to be there" with his SEAL team, Biggs said. "That was his second family."
[www.newstimes.org - Aug. 8, 2011]
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#3:
ROCKFORD, IOWA - American flags flew at half-staff in Wednesday's brisk breeze up and down Main Street, at the post office and at City Hall, a hometown salute to one of the town's own.
Jon Tumilson, 35, Navy SEAL, died Friday when the Chinook helicopter he was aboard was apparently shot down by a Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan. He and 37 others --- most part of a special operations unit --- died in the crash.
President Obama went to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to pay his respects Tuesday as the remains were brought home.
At the high school in Rockford a digital sign flashed a message: U.S. Navy SEAL, Class of 1995, Jon Tumilson, Remembered Never Forgotten."
Another sign downtown shared a more personal message: "God Bless Our Hometown Hero. The ultimate sacrifice of you and your team defending our freedom will not be forgotten. Our thoughts and prayers go out to your family and friends, forever and always."
[ Waterloo Courier, http://wcfcourier.com/ ]
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#4:
Jon T. Tumilson
Date Of Birth: July 1, 1976
Date Of Death: August 6, 2011Petty Officer Jon T. Tumilson, 35, a native of Rockford, died Saturday, August 6, 2011, while conducting special operations combat in Afghanistan. He was born July 1, 1976, at Osage, Iowa.
He joined the U.S. Navy on July 17, 1995 following graduation from the Rudd Rockford Marble Rock Community School. He graduated from Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Ill., in September 1995. He completed Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL School, Coronado, Calif., in April 2002. He served in three west-coast based Special Warfare units and in two east-coast based Special Warfare units.
Petty Officer Tumilson's was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Defense Meritorious Service Medal. His other awards include the Purple Heart, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, Presidential Unit Citation, Combat Action Ribbon, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and four Sea Service Deployment Ribbons, and Rifle Expert and Pistol Expert Medals.
He deployed on multiple deployments to include Afghanistan and Iraq.
He is survived by his parents, George and Kathleen Tumilson of Rockford; two sisters, Kristie Pohlman (Brad Hartgraves) of Cedar Rapids and Joy (Scott) McMeekan of Taylor Ridge, Ill; six nieces and nephews, Kobey Pohlman, Kamryn Pohlman, Kelsi McMeekan, Kaitlyn Pohlman, Sydney McMeekan, Isabella McMeekan; 21 aunts, uncles and cousins; and his trusted canine friend, Hawkeye.
Petty Officer Tumilson was preceded in death by his paternal grandparents, Thomas and Nell Tumilson; maternal grandparents, John and Leona Jacobs; a friend, Kevin Reiter, and his Brothers in Arms.
Funeral services will be held 10 a.m., Friday at the Rudd Rockford Marble Rock Community School Gymnasium. Burial will be in Riverside Cemetery at Rockford.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Frogman238 Memorial Fund, First Security Bank and Trust, Rockford, Iowa, (641)756-3361.
[ Hauser Funeral Home obituary, 8/15/2011 ]
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#5:Update: Iowan killed in copter crash always wanted to be a SEAL
Jon Tumilson always wanted to be a U.S. Navy SEAL.
“He was going to be a Navy SEAL since I can’t remember when,” said Jan Stowe of Rockford, who has been a neighbor of the Tumilson family for 33 years. Tumilson, 35, was one of 30 Americans to die Saturday in Afghanistan when their helicopter was shot down.
“We watched him grow up,” Stowe said Sunday. “We had a tightknit group of kids in the neighborhood. … They played together every day.”
Family members declined to comment Sunday beyond confirming Tumilson’s death in the most deadly attack on American forces since the war in Afghanistan began 10 years ago.
Tumilson was a wrestler in high school before he graduated in 1995. It wasn’t clear when he joined the Navy’s special operations force. He had an address in Virginia Beach, Va., where the SEALs are headquartered.
Stowe said that Tumilson’s parents, who still live in Rockford, supported his career and that she thought they last saw their son in June.
“When he did something, he put his all into it,” Stowe said. “I know he worked hard for the SEALs — he was very focused on what he was doing and very happy with what he was doing.”
Rockford is a town of about 860 people in Floyd County, near Mason City. Andy Klemesrud, athletic director at Rudd-Rockford-Marble Rock High School, said he was a couple of grades ahead of Tumilson when they went to school together.
“He was involved in everything, and he’s someone who’ll be missed from our community,” he said.
Stowe said that Tumilson trained and competed in marathons and triathlons to be prepared for SEALs work.
“He’s like a hero to everyone here,” she said. “It’s sad to have a young person like that be gone, but the good thing (is) that he was doing something he loved.”
Tumilson is the 19th Iowan to die in the war in Afghanistan. Since 2003, 84 Iowans or people with ties to Iowa have died in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and elsewhere.
Des Moines Register -- Aug. 9, 2011
Written by TIFFANY DE MASTERS
tdemasters@dmreg.com-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#6:Fallen soldier remembered as 'all around down-to-earth guy'
ROCKFORD, IOWA — Rockford residents always knew native Jon Tumilson, 35, had a dangerous job as a U.S. Navy SEAL, but they never expected the news they received over the weekend that he was among the 30 Americans killed in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan on Friday.
“You just hear about it all the time, but it never hits home until it’s home,” said Mark Biggs, a neighbor who knew Tumilson his whole life.
“Everybody that knew him is just shocked,” he said. “You just never thought it would happen to Jon. He’s done so many dangerous things.”
Lifelong friend Justin Schriever, Rockford, agreed and said the community of around 900 people was taking the news “hard.”
“Jon really left a mark,” he said. “Every time he came back everybody wanted to see him.
“Coming from a small town and what he accomplished as a Navy SEAL fighting for his country — it was a miracle,” Schriever added.
Tumilson, the son of George and Kathy Tumilson, Rockford, joined the Navy after graduating from Rockford High School in 1995. From there he worked his way up to the U.S. Navy SEALs.
“Basically all the way through school, at least the later part, he had his mind made up that’s what he wanted to do,” Schriever said. “He told himself and all his friends and family that’s what he was going to do.”
“Hell, while training they were going to kick him out because his knees were all battered up,” he said. “He wouldn’t let them.”
Schriever and Biggs said Tumilson was proud to serve his country.
“He loved his country,” Biggs said. “He was willing to do whatever it took. He wanted to be there. That was his second family.”
Outside of the military he was just as dedicated and determined.
“He was a diehard at everything,” Schriever said. “He’d always go the extra mile on everything. He wouldn’t let anything stop him from accomplishing something.”
Tumilson was especially dedicated to running and staying in shape.
Biggs and Schriever said it wasn’t uncommon to see him run anywhere from 14 to 25 miles a day.
“That’s just him,” Schriever said. “There’s not another person around like him.”
“He was an all around good down-to-earth guy,” he added.
Copyright 2011 North Iowa Media Group. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
http://globegazette.com/-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#7:
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