Caleb Christopher among the soldiers honored by TAPS and Arizona State
Caleb Paul Christopher attended Arizona State University for a year-and-a-half before halting his education to enlist in the Army, in large part out of a desire to serve his country in response to the terrorist attacks that occurred on United States soil on September 11th, 2001.
Christopher, who had attained the rank of Sergeant, served in the 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and was killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad, Iraq in June of 2007, five years after he'd enlisted.
Ten years after Christopher's death, his family had the opportunity to honor his memory at Sun Devil Stadium, through the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), and as part of Arizona State University's campus-wide Salute to Service initiative. TAPS coordinated with Arizona State for the University to host the families of 12 fallen service-members in their game against Colorado, and the University simultaneously coordinated with Adidas for the players to wear commemorative "Brotherhood" uniforms honoring the sacrifice of alumni Pat Tillman, as well as others affiliated with the University who have served.
"They (TAPS) contacted us at the beginning of October, and asked if we wanted to participate in honor of my brother," said Sarah Simmons, sister of Caleb Christopher. "This is the first time he's been recognized through Arizona State."
Simmons said she was surprised by the initiative- while her brother was a student at Arizona State, he didn't graduate, but as an alumni herself, and with another brother employed by the University, she was happy to see him included.
Simmons flew down with her children from Seattle, where she now resides, to be part of the ceremony.
"On gameday, we all met by the stadium, and each family had an ROTC escort," said Simmons. "We went to a tailgate party where they gave us food, and then they took us down to the area in the north entrance, by the Pat Tillman statue. There's a room down there, and that's when they presented us with the jerseys."
Arizona State presented each family with a jersey, commemorating their fallen soldier. Simmons said Caleb always liked the number 13, so that's the number the family requested appear on the jersey.
"13 was a big number for my brother, and my family has always sort of clung to that number, so I got a little emotional when (Graham) gave us the jersey with 13 on it, and his last name," said Simmons. "That was definitely one of the most memorable things for me."
"Coach Graham presented us with the jersey, and they gave us time to take pictures and be in that area, and then on the field watching the players do pre-game activities."
While they didn't meet or interact with any of the players before the game, Simmons said that Todd Graham had spent time during the week sharing the stories of the fallen soldiers with the players so that they were aware of who they were representing when they took the field that week. Arizona State Head Coach Todd Graham alluded to meeting the families in his opening comments during the post-game press conference.
“First and foremost, I want to thank the families of the servicemen who gave their lives for our country and for our freedom," said Graham "I told our players- this week we were running the slides of the men who gave their lives, and I thought it was important that they understand, that's somebody's dad, somebody's brother, somebody's sister that gave their life. I wish that every one of our players got to meet with the families before the game. Looking at those moms, and the wives and the dads of the fallen soldiers, I got to see a little glimpse of the price they pay for us. I don't cry very much before football games, but I did tonight. That experience for me was special.”
In a separate postgame interview with Tim Healey and Jeff Van Raaphorst, Todd Graham credited the team with playing in a way that he felt honored the memory of the soldiers they had recognized before the game.
"We wanted to honor them with how we played. It’s not just winning, it’s how we win: with class and character. I talked to our kids all week that freedom is not free. It really was a special night for us and I’m proud of how our guys represented them and honored them tonight.”
Simmons said one of the most valuable parts of the experience was interacting with members of other families that had experienced similar loss.
"We were interacting with another family that had lost their brother. Losing a sibling is very different than losing your father or your son. They had lost their sibling three years ago, and for us it had been ten years, so we're a little bit further out from it. Because of that, we were able to share with them a little bit about the journey, and it was kind of nice to be able to do that, because of the bond you have."
Simmons said the most special part of the day was her brother's sacrifice had not been forgotten.
"Honestly it was the first time my brother had been publicly honored. When he died the media did a story on him, and I believe at the one year anniversary there was some follow up, but with this being 10 years, it felt fitting that he would be honored. It's fitting in our home state of Arizona that he would be honored, and it's just really nice that even after 10 years they're still remembering the soldiers who gave it all."
Simmons also mentioned that there was a family in attendance that had lost their soldier 12 years ago, in 2005.
"After so much time, people forget and time goes on," said Simmons. "But these guys lost their lives for our country, and no matter how long it's been, they still deserve to be recognized and honored."
The memory of another fallen soldier, Pat Tillman, who played at ASU and went on to have a career in the NFL before enlisting and ultimately losing his life in 2004, is something that helped spur the Salute to Service initiative, and Simmons believes that Tillman's legacy and affiliation with Arizona State helps bring awareness to families of other fallen soldiers.
"It brings the issue more into the light, which I think is helpful, so people don't forget."
For more information about the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors