Fort Campbell soldier, expectant dad identified as one of nine killed in Black Hawk crashes
Staff Sgt. Caleb Gore was, and remains, a beacon of light, according to his father.
Gore, 25, died along with eight other soldiers Wednesday when two HH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from the 101st Airborne Division crashed.
Related story: 9 Black Hawk victims identified after Wednesday crash near Fort Campbell
Gore’s service for the United States, including the training the soldiers were undertaking during the crash in Trigg County, Kentucky, was a driving force in his life.
Remembering Caleb Gore, soldier and soon-to-be father from North Carolina
Tim Gore, of Fremont, North Carolina, said his son’s life should renew belief in a unified country — and life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
“Caleb personified what is good about our nation and why we must still hope in what he (they) died for,” Gore wrote in a testimony. “He was the light of my world and I have no words to express my grief right now.”
Caleb Gore was married to his high school sweetheart Haleigh, who is three months pregnant with a boy, according to his father.
Gore was an Airborne medic and was working toward becoming a registered nurse.
Tim Gore, who lives about 60 miles east of Raleigh, N.C., in 1,200-person Fremont, is pastor at Fremont Missionary Baptist Church. He’s posted on social media and talked with various media outlets so his son “may be honored for his service and the life he lived.”
"God is on the Throne and just as I’m holding my baby boy on my arms (in a posted photo), I am absolutely convinced he now is in the arms of my King,” wrote Tim Gore. “I will see you again my son.”
Tim Gore also shared a social media message he received from a friend of Caleb's: "He was one of the best people I’ve ever worked with/met, would always put a smile on your face when you were feeling down. Went out of his way to help anyone in need. I will miss him greatly. My prayers are with your family. Us service members lost a brother but he will always be remembered in our hearts!"
All nine service members aboard the helicopters were killed during a "multi-ship" exercise using night vision goggles, Brig. Gen. John Lubas, the 101st Airborne deputy commander, said at a news conference Thursday. Five people were in one helicopter and four were in the other, he said.
"This is truly a tragic loss for our families, our division, and Fort Campbell," Lubas said.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Black Hawk helicopter crash: Family identifies soldier killed
