Fallen soldier mourned

Family remembers husband, son, brother

January 15, 2006

JOEL DAVIDSON/Frontiersman reporter

MAT-SU - Nations honor brave soldiers who die in war, but this week an individual Mat-Su family is mourning the loss of their husband, son and brother.

Last week, 22-year-old Mat-Su resident Jacob Melson lost his life while fighting in Iraq. Serving as a specialist for the Alaska Army National Guard, Melson, along with three fellow Alaska soldiers and eight passengers died when the helicopter they were flying in crashed Jan. 7 in bad weather in an area marked by heavy fighting. The cause of the crash is still unknown.

While flags fly at half-staff and the country salutes Melson's service, his family wiped away tears and pored over photographs this past week, while trying to piece together a few words to honor the young man who they now desperately miss.

Less than six months ago, Jacob Melson married his high school sweetheart, Sarah Ling, on the banks of the Little-Su River. This week, his young widow tried to say a few words about her husband. She spoke of his love for the outdoors and his desire to sing and play music with her. She wants people to know how passionately they loved one another and how much he is missed.

Perhaps most importantly though, Sarah Melson spoke of her husband's growing love for God.

&#8220He really turned his life over a little bit before he left,” she said. &#8220He was passionate for the Lord.”

His family remembers a kind, soft-spoken man whose humor and personality quickly endeared him as an epic hero to his young nephews and nieces.

Jacob Melson's sister, Sonja Melson, recalled the unselfishness of her little brother growing up and how hard it was for him to ask for anything, even this past Christmas.

&#8220The only thing he ever asked me for was BBQ sauce and seasonings and a blanket,” she wrote in a letter for this story. &#8220When talking to mom after Christmas, all he could talk about was BBQ'ing. Jacob had a very big heart and wanted everyone to be happy no matter what the situation was.”

Like many of those closest to him, Jacob Melson's little sister, Rachel Melson, described her big brother as a man who could coax a smile from just about anyone.

&#8220I find myself trying to fight back tears as I laugh because a lot of the things I remember are Jacob just being himself, so silly, and that laugh he had that just sort of sucked you in,” she wrote.

And his big brother, Joshua Melson, told of a little sidekick who, as they grew up in the Valley, would sometimes take the blame for him when necessary.

&#8220I thank God that He gave me the time that I got to spend with Jakey, the lifetime that he had to share,” Joshua wrote.

Jacob Melson's mother and father, Teresa and Mark Melson, remembered an imaginative Alaska boy who grew up to love and serve God, family and country. They described a boy who played hard, danced to his favorite songs when no one was looking, and followed in his father's footsteps to serve the country.

&#8220There are not words to express the sorrow we are feeling at this time,” his father said. &#8220He is our hero.”

Contact Joel Davidson at

352-2266 or joel.davidson@

frontiersman.com.