Page 2 - Nellis Creech NTTR Bullseye 12-18-15

2 December 18, 2015 Commentary BULLSEYE

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Finding strength through my Air Force family

By Airman 1st Class Christopher Thornbury
22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Colby Hardin
Kan. — I joined the military to provide
for my family, but I never would have ex- Three 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs Airmen reach out to Airman 1st Class Christopher Thornbury, front-center, at McConnell
pected the challenges my family would Air Force Base, Kan., Dec. 11. Thornbury said his Air Force family has been with him for over a year and helped him through the loss of
face and how we would evolve. his son, Emmitt Alan Thornbury.

When I enlisted in the Air Force I train and took me to an emotion I didn’t save our son but knowing we tried has up to me and said, “Your friends are
joined another family without intending know existed. made our situation easier to live with. here.” As I went to the back of the room,
to do so. This family has been with me I saw four familiar faces that I recog-
ever since, especially during my family’s Leadership Air Force family nized from base. A chaplain, two co-
darkest tragedy. My leadership was incredible. They I received calls, texts and messages workers and my fearless leader traveled
made sure I was at every appointment from many people sending condolences the 303 miles to be there for me and my
Family and ensured I knew all my options so and asking if there was anything they family. I felt overwhelmed with emotion
After completing Basic Military we could take the best course of action. could do. A vast majority of those people to the point I could barely breathe.
Training and technical training, my This allowed Emmitt and Kristina to I had just met within the year and a half
family and I made the 303-mile drive go to one of the best hospitals in the of my enlistment, not in my 24 years It may not be as obvious as time
from our hometown, Lebanon, Mis- nation for children with severe prob- before; they were co-workers, mentors, passes, but they are still helping me;
souri, to McConnell Air Force Base, lems. If he had any chance of survival, instructors and my leadership. It was my whether they know it or not, just by
Kansas. We didn’t know anyone or any- it would be there and my leadership Air Force family that really made the being a friend, mentor and always un-
thing about the area before arriving. It made it possible. effort to make sure we were OK. derstanding. I don’t know what would
was only my wife Kristina, my daughter I was given emergency leave so we We had the funeral in our hometown, have happened without the resources
Kierstin and me. could stay at the nearby Ronald Mc- so he could be near family. It was a dif- provided to my family by the Air Force
My co-workers welcomed us and Donald House allowing us to be close ficult day that I wish no parent will ever and to my family back at McConnell,
within a few months, I had made friends to the hospital with the best care pos- have to go through. but I do know that because they picked
at work. We soon found out that our sible. In the end, the doctors couldn’t Before the funeral, my brother came me up, I can put my best foot forward.
immediate family was going to grow.
We were going to have a baby boy,
who we decided to name Emmitt Alan
Thornbury.
On Sept. 18, 2015, Emmitt was born.
Hardship
We didn’t have the chance to raise
Emmitt. We’ll never know what kind of
man he would become, if he’d have my
blue eyes or his mother’s dimples. We
won’t be able to take him to ballgames
or pick him up after a fall. We won’t be
able to hold and comfort him when he
is upset — because he isn’t with us any-
more, but he is still with us in our hearts.
His fragile body couldn’t support
life outside his mother’s safe womb. He
only lived a little over an hour but the
impression he left will last forever.
We didn’t go in blind though. We
knew Emmitt was going to face chal-
lenges when the doctors spoke to us
about his deformities caused by his con-
dition, Trisomy 18. It was gut-wrenching
when they began talking about how
much time we would have with him.
They weren’t talking about years or
even months, not even days; they were
talking about minutes and hours. Hear-
ing this hit me harder than a speeding

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