Mayport helicopter crew remembered as 'three shining stars'
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Posted 7:39PM on Friday, March 15, 2002
MAYPORT NAVAL STATION, FLORIDA - Three Navy crew members killed in a helicopter crash off the coast of Greece were remembered as ``three shining stars'' in a memorial service Friday at their home base in Florida. <br>
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Killed Tuesday were 27-year-old Lieutenant Terri Sue Fussner of Manchester, Missouri; 34-year-old Lieutenant Wayne Francis Roberts of New York; and 21-year-old Petty Officer Second Class Jason Edward Lawson of Smyrna, Georgia. <br>
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Their commanding officer, Lieutenant Commander Makr Nowicki, wrote in an e-mail read at the service, ``Our three shining stars will always be with us in our hearts sharing our souls and always in our memories.'' <br>
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Nowicki's helicopter squadron is operating off the decks of several destroyers deployed in the Mediterranean Sea. <br>
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More than 600 mourners crowded into the chapel at Mayport Naval Station; an overflow crowd listened to the services on loud speakers set outside. <br>
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A huge American flag spanned the width of the chapel. On the altar were three folded American flags, three navy hats, pictures of the three crew members and a helicopter pilot's helmet. <br>
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The three were declared dead Thursday after the Navy called off the search, which covered one-thousand square miles in the Mediterranean. <br>
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Their SH-60B Seahawk crashed Tuesday morning while on a routine training flight. <br>
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The Navy is investigating the cause of the crash.