Army Specialist David N. Timmons Jr.

Remember Our Heroes

Army Specialist David N. Timmons Jr., 23, of Lewisville, N.C.

Specialist Timmons was assigned to the 71st Cavalry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Drum N.Y.; died May 5 when the CH-47 Chinook helicopter he was traveling on crashed during combat operations east of Abad, Afghanistan, in the Kunar province. Also killed were: Pfc. Brian M. Moquin Jr., Spc. Justin L. O’Donohoe, Sgt. Jeffery S. Wiekamp, Sgt. John C. Griffith, Sgt. Bryan A. Brewster, Staff Sgt. Christopher T. Howick, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Christopher B. Donaldson, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Eric W. Totten and Lt. Col. Joseph J. Fenty.

The News & Observer
Thomasi McDonald, Staff Writer

The last time David Timmons Sr. saw his only son J.R., a U.S. Army calvary scout, was in January as he was about to go to Afghanistan.
"He shed a few tears, but they were strong tears," Timmons said. "He understood the game of war."

Army Spc. David "J.R." Timmons Jr., 23, of Lewisville, was among 10 American soldiers killed when a helicopter crashed Friday night in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan, his father said.

U.S. Army officials told his father that he was participating in a reconnaissance mission.

"The troops were loading back into the helicopter and somehow, the helicopter lost its hover," Timmons said Monday. "Somehow, maybe because of the wind, one of the blades hit a tree and the helicopter fell 200 feet."

The military said it will be days before it releases the identities of the victims, members of the 10th Mountain Division stationed at Fort Drum, N.Y.

The CH-47 Chinook crashed during the hunt for al-Qaeda and Taliban militants thought to be hiding in rugged and remote Kunar province. The U.S. military said the helicopter was not downed by hostile fire and an investigation was under way.

J.R. Timmons also is survived by his mother, Cynthia Watts Timmons, and sister Shalanta, 19, a Winston-Salem State University student.

David Timmons last talked with his son Easter Sunday. "He said he was doing the best he could and told me to just pray for him," Timmons said.

J.R. Timmons was the oldest of two children. He grew up in Lewisville, a small community outside Winston-Salem.

"He was very athletic," said Timmons. "He played football, basketball and track."

A lithe 6-foot-4, 180 pounder, J.R. played trombone in the West Forsyth High School band before graduating in 2001.

Timmons said one memory from his son's childhood stands out. In elementary school, a well-meaning white teacher told him he would have to work twice as hard as his white counterparts to succeed.

"I was kind of upset at first," Timmons said. "Then, I told him he had to show her he was bigger than that and that's what he did until the very end. If you compare his life to a card game, then I would say he took his hand and played the best game he could for 23 years."

Before enlisting two years ago, J.R. Timmons attended Forsyth Community College where he studied business for two years.

"He was at a midpoint in his life," Timmons said. "He was trying to decide whether to transfer to a four-year-college or go to the Navy or go to the Army."

J.R. Timmons was a lifelong member of Morning Star Baptist Church. "He was shy when it came to standing in the pulpit, but he had a strong faith. He knew the Lord," his father said.

Timmons found out about the crash on the Internet on Friday. He stayed home Saturday waiting for a call from his son or a visit from the Army.

Army Specialist David N. Timmons Jr. died in action on 05/05/06.