He was only 4 when his Golden Knight dad died. Now, he has plans to help other Gold Star kids.
MOORE COUNTY — Kenneth Wasley relates to grief.
Wasley was almost 5 years old when his father, Spec. 5 Michael Wasley, died more than 50 years ago with 13 other members of the Golden Knights Parachute Team in a March 8, 1973, plane crash over Silk Hope, North Carolina.
“It was a different time. A different era,” Wasley said during a Zoom interview from his Pinehurst home. “Walter Cronkite broke the news live. That’s how we found out. We actually saw the accident before we were even notified.”
Wasley, who is in his mid 50s, his mother and sister didn’t find support like the Army’s Survivor Outreach Services, which was put in place for Gold Star families in 2008.
At times, he said, they were shunned by the local community because his mother was Japanese, and the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor three decades earlier was still in the minds of some residents.
“We would be told to sit in the back of the bus or (would) go to church and were told we weren’t invited,” Wasley said. "I said, ‘Why are they treating us this way?’ But my mom was the type of person who just always said, ‘They don’t know.’ She never said anything negative.”
There were a few members of the military community who left enough of an impact on Wasley including his stepfather, Sgt. Maj. James Kraft, and a family friend, both of whom were Golden Knights like his father.
By the time Wasley was an 8-year-old Cliffdale Elementary School student, he said, he knew he wanted to help others like himself who grieved the loss of a parent.
Working with and for other military organizations several years ago, he has since found and created his own nonprofit that helps Gold Star families across the nation, Children of Fallen Heroes.
He now has plans for the organization to create a retreat and center closer to home for Fort Liberty families.
Reconnecting with military
As an adult, Wasley moved to Virginia followed by California and spent more than 20 years in the beauty, spa and salon industry.
The military community drew him back when he became chief marketing officer for the All Veteran Group parachute team, which jumped with President George Bush Sr. for his 90th birthday in 2014.
Wasley captured a photo of the former president kissing his wife, Barbara, after the jump.
He later became chief marketing officer for the Special Forces Association Parachute Team when he found out the Golden Knight who mowed his family’s lawn was part of the team and still jumping at 70 years old.
Starting Children for Fallen Heroes
The mission of the Children of Fallen Heroes, which Wasley officially created in 2015, is to support the children of fallen servicemembers, first responders and foster children and caregivers.
Wasley paused from being as active with the organization after tragedy struck again, when his 28-year-old nephew, Dylan, whom he considered like a son, was killed by a drunk driver in 2020 in California.
The grief augmented his passion for helping the families of servicemembers and first responders who’ve lost loved ones.
“We only have one question to ask when coming over to Children of Fallen Heroes — is it in the best interest of the child,” he said.
Retreat and STEAM center plans
Shortly after a commemorative jump last year marked the 50th anniversary of the crash that claimed his father’s life, Wasley found and purchased about 82 acres of land in Moore County to further Children of Fallen Heroes’ initiatives.
The land is between Morrison Bridge and Lobelia roads near Vass.
The nonprofit’s plans for the land, Wasley said, include a 20-unit tiny home retreat and a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math education center. The project is estimated to cost $15 million. Synergy Steel is assembling the prefabricated tiny homes, and W Squared Consultants is also helping to develop the center.
Wasley said he intentionally wanted the site to be near Fort Liberty.
“It’s home; where my dad served, and it’s home of the Golden Knights,” he said. “It’s home of the airborne and special operations. This will always be home.”
Wasley said the retreat, center and Children of Fallen Heroes’ programs are meant to serve children of fallen heroes, first responders, military, caregivers and foster children.
Tiny home retreat
Wasley said there’s been preparation work like securing community support and program partners before submitting plans to Moore County, which he anticipates will be done within the next couple of months.
“The thing that I found, especially when dealing with all these (Gold Star) families, is nobody wants to sit at home while you’re dealing with grief,” Wasley said. “That’s the worst place to be — the worst because you’ve got photos everywhere. Your brain needs time to heal a little bit and get a grasp of what’s happening in your life. So, we want to be able to offer them a sanctuary to come."
Wasley said he’d like to see the homes ready before the U.S. Open golf tournament in June so that they could be rented out to generate income for the nonprofit when not used by families.
Another nonprofit that provides couples therapy for special operations families has also expressed interest in using the homes and retreat, he said.
STEAM Center
Construction on the 73,000-square-foot STEAM education center is set to begin by the end of this year or early next year, Wasley said.
He said the STEAM focus allows children to express emotions by being creative, and the program empowers critical thinking and fosters a sense of community through collaborative projects and teamwork.
Classes will include agricultural, scuba, drone, robotics, fishing, and using a ropes course, while participants will also learn about canine and wildlife rescue and horses.
Children of Fallen Heroes’ existing STEAM programs across the nation include a robotics team.
The nonprofit is getting ready to have a STEAM aviation program at Moore County airport, where kids can use simulators and then can go up in an airplane, Wasley said.
He said he also hopes that the STEAM center will have a wind tunnel for indoor skydiving.
“That is just a huge integral part for me just because of the skydiving, my dad and the history of who we are,” he said.
Property use during construction
During construction, Wasley said, the property will be used for hiking and camping for the nonprofit.
Children of Fallen Heroes will also offer its existing programs like indoor skydiving for children, an animal and wildlife rescue program or a coastal fishing program at the Moore County center.
Wasley said he is also working with members of the special operations and airborne communities to host a mud obstacle course competition with a mountain bike and ropes course to raise more money.
He said the center and retreat are about serving the community.
“If it’s a military ... or first responders, yeah they’re going to get a priority to come in, especially in our home court at Fort (Liberty),” Wasley said. “We have to take care of our own.”
Staff writer Rachael Riley can be reached at rriley@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3528.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Retreat for Gold Star children planned near Fort Liberty
