Air Force Tech. Sgt. Adam K. Ginett

Remember Our Heroes

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Adam K. Ginett, 29, of Knightdale, N.C.

TSgt. Ginett was assigned to the 31st Civil Engineer Squadron, Aviano Air Base, Italy; died Jan. 19, 2010 near Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered from an improvised explosive device.

Tech. Sgt. Adam K. Ginett (aka "Brother Circus Trick" to his EOD brothers}

Relatives and friends are mourning the loss of a Knightdale native and Airman who died in Afghanistan of wounds inflicted by an improvised explosive device.

Ginett worked in explosive ordinance disposal and was a master sniper. Ginett's parents said that they learned of his death Tuesday after three men came to their front door.

“There was a captain, a lieutenant and a chaplain. And once I saw them, I knew,” said Christina Kazakavage, Ginett's mother.

Christina Kazakavage said Saturday that she takes comfort knowing her son died doing what he loved. “He understood what he was supposed to do,” Christina Kazakavage said.

“He’s over there saving lives,” said James Kazakavage, Ginett's step-father.

Ginett lived in Knightdale before joining the Air Force at age 18. He served three tours in Iraq and two tours in Afghanistan. Ginett earned the Bronze Star on his first tour in Afghanistan. He and six others in his unit came under fire from 28 members of the Taliban. They killed 13 insurgents and captured the others, according to his parents. His unit was unharmed.

“He said, 'I wasn't supposed to take a life, that was not my mission. I’m supposed to save lives by getting rid of the explosives,'” Christina Kazakavage recalled from a conversation with her son.

According to his grandfather, Jim Haslam of Cary, Ginett's unit was walking toward a location where a cache of IEDs was thought to be hidden. One other person (Army Capt Paul Pena) was killed in the incident and three were wounded, Haslam said.

Ginett opted for explosive ordnance duty after he graduated from boot camp. Though he had planned for a career in the military since he was in high school, he had other interests, too. He interned for four summers during high school with cartoonists at Walt Disney World in Florida, and he worked in Nancy Redman's pottery studio in Knightdale during his last year at East Wake. Redman remembers him as an artistic friend of the family. "He just had a big interest in art," she said.

Ginett held two bachelor's degrees and a master's degree in criminal justice and political science, according to the obituary. At the time of his death, he lived with his mother, step-father and sister, Sarah Kazakavage, in Coats.

Canadian Brig.-Gen. Daniel Menard, who heads coalition forces in Kandahar province, identified Capt. Paul Pena, 27, and Tech Sgt. Adam Ginett, 29 as the two who were killed. Five other soldiers were injured. Word of the incident was delayed pending notification of family.

"Their loss will be mourned by Americans, Canadians and the Afghans they served with," Menard said. "We will remember their sacrifice."

Ginett, of Knightdale, N.C., was a counter-IED specialist. He had previously been awarded the Bronze Star for heroic or meritorious achievement or service during his previous deployments. "Adam was a dedicated soldier and a team player," Menard said.

TSgt Ginett is survived by his father Allyn Ginett, of Sodus New York, mother & step-father, Christina & James Kazakavage, and his sister Sarah Kazakavage.

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Adam K. Ginett was killed in action on 1/19/10.