F-16 avionics instructor pays homage to Medal of Honor relative

  • Published
  • By Airman First Class Jelani Gibson
  • PA
SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Tech. Sgt. Derek Keathley, an F-16 avionics instructor with the 365th Training Squadron, was emotional while attending a dedication service Jan. 26 at the Olney (Texas) Family Clinic to see his great-great uncle honored for his heroic service during World War II.

The emotion was not just because of the family tie, but because of what his relative stood for.

Keathley's relative, former U.S. Army Staff Sgt. George D. Keathley, received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions on Sept. 14, 1944 during a battle in Mount Altuzzo, Italy, where he risked his life by taking command of two heavily outnumbered platoons and inflicting casualties in the face of overwhelming odds as a member of Company B, 338th Infantry Regiment, 85th Infantry Division.

During the ensuing action, Staff Sgt. Keathley organized the platoons' defense and helped gather ammunition until he was wounded, after which he continued to encourage his men.  The staff sergeant died shortly after the attack was driven back and was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in March, 1945.

The actual medal is on display at Texas A&M University, from where Staff Sgt. Keathley graduated from in 1937 and a dormitory is named after him.

Despite the legacy his great-great uncle left, Keathley takes away a more humble lesson.

"He was never after medals," said Keathley, "He was there to do his job."

Keathley now aims to live up to the legacy of his relative by ingratiating that same act of valor and mindset into his routine as a technical training school instructor.

Staying focused and assuming responsibility regardless of rank are some of the lessons Keathley has taken away from the example his great-great uncle set. Lower ranking members may still be put in a position of authority well beyond their grade, Keathley said.

He tries to instill this sense of responsibility in his students as well. Oftentimes Keathley shares the Medal of Honor reading with his students to show them the more serious side of being a maintainer.

Students looking beyond the scope of tech school and staying focused on why they are in the Air Force is paramount, said Keathley.

"People's lives will be in their hands," said Keathley.

Keathley also takes these values and type of thinking into the work he does as a maintainer.

"I love seeing what I do transform into air power," said Keathley.

Keathley continues to try and live up to the high standards his relative set.

"I'm proud of his legacy," said Keathley.