Rick Newman was an 18-year-old living in Rogers, Arkansas, who wanted to do something greater. He had graduated high school and was living with his mother, stepdad and twin sisters. Life was hard.
Between working three jobs Newman decided that if he was going to go somewhere he needed to join the military.
On Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists killed nearly 3,000 people and injured more than 6,000 in the worst attack against the homeland in U.S. history.
One week before the planes hit the towers in New York City, Newman passed all the tests and signed up for four years in the United States Air Force.
While men, women and children perished in NYC, Virginia and Pennsylvania, a sense of patriotism swelled across the nation. With his military acceptance, Newman, was no exception.
“My mom and sisters were nervous and cried a lot but I was motivated,” Newman said. “I signed up to serve my country and when the attacks happened, that feeling became even greater.”
Shortly after the attacks, every basic training flight doubled as the US military prepared for something bigger.
Newman spent six and half weeks in basic training before transferring to Shephard Air Force Base for technical training that led him to become an Aerospace Ground Equipment Technician, which services the hydraulics and start carts on severely damage aircrafts in active duty.
Newman cannot remember how many times he deployed in his 20.5 years of service. He went to Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel, Germany, Alaska, Japan, South Korea and Oklahoma.
In the midst of his missions, Newman met his wife Mary Beth (Hentzen) of Seward. The couple had a whirlwind romance and were at times separated. When Newman returned, Mary Beth tearfully sprinted, with high heels clicking, across the tarmac and leaped into his arms which in time led to three bundles of joy. The happy couple now lives on the family farm Mary Beth grew up on just outside the Seward city limits.
