Remembering Asante K. McCalla

While I mourn every death in service to our country, Asante K. McCalla's strikes me as particularly noteworthy for its sadness and the mystery surrounding it. Most service-related deaths have a clear cause and explanation. It often does take a while to get to the truth of what actually caused the death. Asante's grieving family is left to wonder, perhaps forever, what happened to their beloved son. He was an "excellent child," according to his adoring mother, herself a Marine Corps veteran. He was a proud Morehouse Man who brushed off the naysayers. Servant leader not too proud to hump sandbags to help those in peril. Inspiration to others. Self-professed "Lifer," who stated career goal was command at sea. Driven and dedicated to succeed. Son of the South, where people who looked like him often had obstacles that others did not have to overcome. Patriot. A "bright shining prince," lost at sea.

Asante, whose name means "Thank you," was one of the best citizens ever produced by this country, and I feel compelled to say "Asante" to his grieving family, both biological and extended. He majored in Sociology at Morehouse, I presume because he had a deep interest in how people interacted with each other. I'm sure that, had he lived longer, he could have shared some of those observations for the benefit of all. What he had learned so far was lost at sea with him.

It is tragic that his story had to end at such a young age, but if his family has anything to say about it, his legacy will long endure. His "last full measure of devotion" will not have been in vain. His family plans to start a scholarship in his name. I can't think of a more fitting tribute. I'm hoping that the Morehouse and Navy families step forward to help make that a reality. I look forward to the day that some aspiring sailor smiles at their scholarship fund check and says, "Asante." The best way the Navy can say thank you to his family is to give them as full and accurate an account of his loss as is possible under the circumstances. His Mother's impassioned plea for information on Facebook was difficult to watch. Let's hope the family receives some answers, and some closure. Each family suffering such a loss deserves no less.