(MOBILE, Ala.) May 26 - Family members of an Air Force officer from Foley are mourning his death. According to the Defense Department, 39-year old Lt. Col. Mark Stratton died in Afghanistan on Memorial Day. A relative says Stratton died when his jeep hit an in IED, an improvised explosive device.
His family gathered to remember the Foley High School graduate as a hero. His mother and younger brother are spending time with each other. A family member says Lt. Col. Stratton has a wife and three children who all live in Texas.
Locally, Sen. Jeff Sessions commented on Stratton's death. Sessions reminds us that Afghanistan is a very dangerous war front. "We need to never take for granted the willingness of American men and women to take the call to go to harms way and execute a policy that the Congress and the President have asked them to do," Sessions said. "They're the ones at risk not us and they put their lives on the line everyday. We can never be too proud of what they do and too grateful for what they do."
Lt. Col. Stratton's body will be flown back to the U.S. later this week. His family says he will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
