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CBS News
26-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Fallen service members recognized at 58th annual Memorial Day Ceremony in Baltimore County
Ten fallen service members were honored at the 58th annual Memorial Day Ceremony at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens in Timonium. Each name was announced one by one on Monday, with special attention given to those who died while on duty within the past year. "No matter how many years pass, the weight of this day never lessens," said Maryland Congressman Johnny Olszewski. "The importance of us gathering never grows thin, and because of that, the names of our heroes will never be forgotten." There were a few service members mentioned at the beginning of the ceremony who recently passed and will be honored at the 2026 Memorial Day Ceremony. "He lived and he loved" SPC Jacob Mullen, at 25 years old, was killed in January. "It was just really nice to know that even people who have never met him or never heard of him now do know him and have heard of him," said Gold Star mom Linda Mullen. Even though this Memorial Day was difficult for the Mullen family, Linda Mullen said it's important that her son's memory is kept alive. "He lived and he loved with his whole heart," Linda Mullen said. "So that's my new motto: to love like Jacob did. And to make sure that everybody that I know and I love knows that I love them because he did that." "He wanted to die a hero" PFC Charles Hyman, another service member honored, died in June 2024, at the age of 33. Hyman's mother, Carline, said he was a natural-born leader and gave his all to defending America, even though he was born in Jamaica. "He always said he wanted to die a hero," Carline Hyman said. "He said, 'I want to do something amazing that where people will look back and say, 'Charles Hyman did this,'" Remembering the purpose of Memorial Day Mothers of the fallen service members ask that while people are enjoying Memorial Day that they think of those who lost their lives. Maj. Gen. Janeen Birckhead, with the Maryland National Guard, said it's important to value our freedom in memory of those who fought for it. "Let's strive every day to be worthy of their sacrifice. God bless our fallen heroes, God bless the USA," Birckhead said.
American Military News
26-05-2025
- General
- American Military News
A ‘gentle giant': Maryland soldier killed in training to be honored in Memorial Day service
The first piece of evidence that Jacob Mullen wanted to serve in the military is a kindergarten assignment: 'If I were president, I would be in the Army,' the lined paper says below a young boy's drawing of a soldier. The glamour of military service in video games and other media might have played a role in his ambitions to enlist, but as he got older, Mullen was just 'very much into the idea of serving his country,' his mother, Linda Mullen, said. It also came from his love for being a part of a team, she said. When he wrestled for Parkside High School, he always sought to score for the team. He wasn't a football star but loved the game for the camaraderie. He was big on lifting weights and would always hit the gym with his friends. 'If they were lifting twice a day, he lifted twice a day,' Linda said. As a freshman in high school, he wrestled at around 145 pounds; by his death in January, he weighed twice as much, stood 6-foot-2 and had lifted cars in strongman events. 'He was a big man, but he could be so tender,' said his mother. His family always called him a 'gentle giant.' The Fruitland native, who ended up serving at Fort Stewart Army Base in Georgia, will be honored this year at a statewide Memorial Day service at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens. He and a fellow service member, Staff Sgt. Shelbe Butner, were killed in January during a training operation. Mullen was 25, and Butner was 28. They died during a nighttime driving exercise at Fort Stewart, which is the largest Army post east of the Mississippi River. The 3rd Infantry Division said in a news release that the two motor transport officers were training 'under blackout conditions' in a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, which rolled off the road into standing water. The night before, three Army personnel on a training mission in Washington were among the dozens killed when a commercial airliner collided with their Black Hawk helicopter in midair. Army Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew L. Eaves, a Southern Maryland resident who was one of the helicopter's pilots, will also be honored at this year's ceremony. Four Army soldiers from Fort Stewart who had been deployed to Lithuania were also found dead last month after they and their vehicle went missing during a training mission. Three of them were located, dead, in the mud-encased armored vehicle after rescue crews pulled it out from 15 feet of water. Monday's statewide Memorial Day ceremony at the Timonium cemetery, which kicks off at 10 a.m., will include addresses from U.S. Rep. for Maryland Johnny Olszewski Jr. and Maj. Gen. Janeen Birckhead, adjutant general of the Maryland National Guard. In addition to Mullen and Eaves, eight other Armed Forces members who died while serving on active duty will be honored: Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Jack M. Brown, of Crofton, died May 22, 2024; Army Lt. Col. Mickey M. West Jr., of Aberdeen, died June 4, 2024; Army Pfc. Charles M. Hyman, of Baltimore, died June 8, 2024; Army Staff Sgt. Sean A. Lange, of New Market, died August 25, 2024; Air Force Master Sgt. Justin S. Keirn, of Bel Air, died October 16, 2024; Air Force Senior Airman Gregory K. Riley Jr., of Aberdeen, died November 17, 2024; Army Spc. William T. Brown III, of Baltimore, died December 17, 2024; And Army Staff Sgt. Jared A. Finnerty, of Pasadena, died February 16, 2025. Next year's honorees already include three more service members who died in March and April, including Army Pfc. Davon T. Moore, an Owings Mills resident. Last year, the annual ceremony honored Maryland Air National Guard Tech Sgt. Lacy O'Neill and Makai Cummings, two Baltimore-area natives who were killed in separate car crashes. Colleagues of Cummings, a Baltimore City College lacrosse standout, and O'Neill, an outdoors enthusiast, had described the losses to their units as devastating — both were known for being extremely friendly and talented, always willing to help their fellow service members. Mullen's loved ones remember him for his sunny personality. 'He was always a very, very positive person,' said Ryan Williams, who met Mullen while they both served at Fort Stewart. 'I couldn't figure out how he did it.' Williams, who left the Army last July, had a bit of a sibling rivalry with Mullen. Within Williams' first 10 minutes in the platoon, colleagues started describing him and Mullen as 'twins.' But they did have some points of contention: Williams is from Texas, and the soldier from Maryland 'wanted to make sure that I knew that Texas wasn't all that as much as I thought it was.' But the two did end up becoming 'super close. we were brothers at the end of the day,' said Williams. Mullen enjoyed his role as a driver in the Army and often helped Williams learn the ropes of that job. 'He never thought twice about helping myself or somebody else,' said Williams, who described Mullen as a selfless friend who 'did it without thought of what's in it for him. ' And he was never a kid who shied away from affection, either, his mother said — even in his teenage years 'when he loved you, he loved you with his whole being.' That's carried on to his children, too. Like his early desire to serve in the Army, Mullen had early ambitions to become a father; he was coming up with baby names as an 8-year-old, his mother said. Since then, he's been able to name three children of his own: Axel, 3; Josephine, 2; and Elsie, who is due in June. But he'd been coming up with more names all along — his mother found the lists while going through his belongings. Some of those names were inspired by mythological figures whom Mullen loved to research. 'He could talk your ear off about it all day long,' his mother said. 'Some people were always on their phone … Jacob was probably reading something [about history or mythology] or looking at cars.' Allergies in the household always dashed Jacob's hopes for a dog, but his mother is now a happy dog owner — and she's convinced that her son posthumously helped them connect. In the wake of his death, she and her sister saw the pup in an adoption ad that referred to the dog as a 'gentle giant.' Curious, she checked the website and was entranced by the dog's sad eyes. 'I just remember thinking, 'he's so sad, and I'm so sad, so maybe we could just be sad together,'' she said. The dog's name? Hermes, the Greek god believed to connect the living and the dead. 'I didn't realize that I needed him,' said Hermes' new owner. He has made things 'a little bit easier,' giving her a friend she can focus on — 'and he makes me get out of bed.' 'He made me keep moving at a time when it was really hard to keep moving,' she said. Have a news tip? Contact Dan Belson at [email protected], on X as @DanBelson_ or on Signal as @danbels.62. ©2025 Baltimore Sun. Visit Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
CBS News
24-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Remembering Maryland's own Jacob Mullen in honor of Memorial Day
Specialist Jacob Mullen is one of 10 fallen service members who will be honored during the 58th annual Memorial Day ceremony at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens in Timonium. Mullen, a father, son and fiancé served in the Army for seven years and was previously deployed to Poland. Jacob and Staff Sgt. Shelbe Butner both died during a field training exercise in Georgia on January 30 when their tactical vehicle rolled off a road into standing water. "Hug and love those around you because time is way more fleeting," said his mom, Linda Mullen. "I know it sounds trite and everyone says it but it's not until your 25-year-old son is gone that you realize just how little time you have." He called his mom the night before the field operation. She said he told her he'd be gone until March and that he loved her. That was the last time she heard from him. "My biggest fear in the whole process is that he'll be forgotten," Linda said. She was honored when she got notified her son would be represented during Mondays Memorial Day Ceremony at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens. "To know that other people are recognizing him in an honorable way, I don't know if I have the right words to express just how much it means to us," she said. A gentle giant Jacob was born in Pennsylvania and moved to Fruitland, MD when he was 10-years-old. "He always considered himself raised in Maryland, from Maryland," said Linda. "Like he was one of those people who wore the Maryland flag, no matter how tacky it can be in clothing. He wore it, proudly." He grew up playing sports like little league lacrosse, football, bocce and his favorite, wrestling. In the Army, he wrestled in some combative tournaments and helped to train other soldiers. His family referred to him as a gentle giant who adored his children. "There was nothing more than he wanted than to be a dad," Linda said. Jacob's fiancé is currently expecting and his baby girl is due in June. "So we're just going to make sure that they know that, that everything we do shows them how much he absolutely would have chosen to be there with them," she said. A little piece of Jacob While her son is no longer here physically, she believes her son sent her a companion that could be. She was watching the local news at her home in Delaware and a shelter dog was highlighted. He too, like her son, was referred to as a gentle giant. "His eyes were the saddest I'd ever seen, and I just remember thinking," she said. "He's so sad and I'm so sad." It was also his name, Hermes, that drew her to him. "My son loved history, loved mythology and Hermes is the mediator he's the only god that could navigate between the land of the living and the dead," she said. Linda visited the mastiff mix and said he seemed so sad. Hermes wasn't walking and didn't know what to do on a leash. She came back daily and after a few days she brought him home. That's when she got the adoption papers. "His projected birthdate was January 30th which was the day Jacob passed," she said. Hermes projected birthdate was the same date, but two years earlier from when her son died. "I feel like every day when I go home and see my dog like a little piece of Jacob is there… he sent him to me," Linda said. Her new companion and her grandbabies are keeping Jacob close to her heart. Jacob Mullen's awards and decorations include the Army Achievement Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon. The 58th annual Memorial Day Ceremony at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens is Monday, May 26. It's begins at 10 a.m. and is open to the public.
