ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- On a bright and breezy morning, participants of the mission from the United States, Australia and Japan Air Forces gathered around the open cargo hold near the tail of a C-130 Hercules. Inside, underneath precisely hung U.S. and Hawaiian flags, the ramp held a special aerial delivery bundle decorated with images of a Senior Airman gone, as they say, much before his time. The words across the front of the bundle read, “In loving memory of Jeremy Jutba-Hake.”
At the gathering, Hake’s friends, leadership and family told stories of how he led and served with them and of the legacy he left behind. Judging from the amount of tears upon the cheeks of attendees, “Jutba,” as most called him, was clearly loved by many.
Jutba served as a C-130H instructor loadmaster with the 36th Airlift Squadron, 374th Airlift Wing, Yokota Air Base, Japan, from November 2013 to 2015. During post-flight duties following a training mission at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Jutba collapsed and later died.
At the time, he was participating in the annual OCD, where donated supplies are airdropped to island villages and atolls scattered throughout Micronesia as part of training evolutions conducted by C130 aircrew.
“He had a contagious smile,” said Jutba’s mother, Eva Hake. “He told his father last year how happy he was to be a loadmaster and he loved his job. He loved his squadron and all the people he had met along the way. He always lived like there was no tomorrow.”
Those who knew Jutba say he lived the kind of life that left an impression on many, evidenced by the words and actions of those with whom he served. After his passing, his fellow Airmen began a memorial foundation in his honor. The foundation’s name: Santa 61; the call sign of Jutba’s last flight.
Senior Airman Anthony Schoof, a fellow 36th Airlift Squadron loadmaster and friend of Jutba’s, helped start the foundation and helped prepare Jutba’s memorial bundle for the ceremony.
“All the money donated to Santa 61 goes to Operation Christmas Drop because this mission is the best thing a loadmaster can do,” Schoof said. “We love it and I know he loved it.”
Jutba’s father, Chief Master Sgt. (Ret.) Jonathan Hake, spoke of the love that Jutba’s wingman showed in the way they honored him after his passing.
“It’s a wonderful tribute to the fact that the Air Force is a family,” Jonathan said. “This has been one sterling example of how those aren’t just words. We’re really grateful to his squadron and everyone at Operation Christmas Drop.”
After Jutba’s passing in 2015, members of the 36 AS travelled to his home in Hawaii to attend his memorial service with his family. At that time, Eva and Jonathan openly welcomed those Airmen, treating them like family; in other words, treating them exactly how Jutba would have wanted them to be treated.
For this year’s Operation Christmas Drop, Jutba’s teammates decided to return the favor, extending an invitation to his parents to come to Guam and witness the good work and great training which had so excited their son.
Connected through service and sacrifice, there is forever a strong sense of unity between 36 AS members and the Hake family, a bond that will continue well into the future.
During the ceremony, Jutba’s friends and family spoke highly of his kindness and leadership. They described him as the type of person who would come to the aid of anyone in need. They spoke of what he taught them professionally and as a person. But ultimately, they spoke of his legacy.
“Every time you hug your spouse or your children, and when you spend that extra time with your family, you picture Jeremy,” said Lt. Col. Dale Davies, 36th AS commander. “Ladies and gentlemen, that’s a legacy.”
That legacy is already making an impact. Later that day Jutba’s fellow Airmen delivered his memorial bundle to the island of Satawol, where the gift of supplies went to the aid of the island’s inhabitants. After the drop, all 600 of those inhabitants flooded the beach to wave and say thank you to the aircrew as they passed back by.
The current iteration of OCD continues, providing training opportunities, delivering joy to thousands. In other words, being exactly what Hake would intend it to be.