Sgt. Jonathan Edwards stands with his wife, Sarah, daughter, Marseille, and son, Grant before placing a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown at Arlington Cemetery last Saturday.
After 20 years in the military, including multiple tours overseas, Sgt. Jonathan Edwards visited Arlington Cemetery Saturday to place a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown.
“It’s extremely humbling to be there, for one,” said the 1998 Prairie High School graduate. “To have an opportunity to lay a wreath there is unbelievable.”
During his time in the Air Force, Edwards made three trips to Turkey during Operation North Watch. Shortly after 9/11, he participated in air space surveillance at the 2002 winter Olympics in Salt Lake. In 2003, he deployed to Kuwait as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. There, he was credited for saving 17 service members’ lives.
In 2004, Edwards joined the Oregon National Guard as a crew chief and flight instructor of H-60 Blackhawks. He has rescued several hikers, hunters and wounded mountain climbers. Edwards also provided Medevac support in Operation Iraqi Freedom (2009), Operation Joint Guardian Kosovo (2013) and Operation Inherent Resolve Iraq/Syria (2017).
Edwards enjoyed touring Washington D.C. with his wife, Sarah, daughter, Marseille, and son, Grant.
Jonathan and Sarah met in the military. She served in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is the first time their children visited Arlington Cemetery and the national landmarks in D.C.
“If they can understand the scope and the price people paid for them to have the lifestyle they have today, that would be the biggest lesson for them,” he said.
