I had the unfortunate duty of calling Fort Stewart to report the death of a YCA graduate. Cadet Krystal Loper died on Friday October 13th. She was a wonderful young lady with her whole life ahead of her. On Tuesday, October 17th I spoke to YCA and let them know about Krystal and also let them know that Krystal's funeral would be the next day at noon. The YCA staff got to work and arranged for the color guard to present at Krystal's funeral 6 hours away. When I got to the funeral home at 12:30PM, I was shocked to see the YCA van and color guard ready to go. Not only does YCA care, they love their kids. You do not know how much it meant to me and to members of Krystal's family to see those kids, who did not even know Krytstal, perform at her funeral. I was moved to tears and still am thinking of the dedication of the program. Thank you very much for teaching these kids committment, honor and dedication. You will always have my greatest respect and support. I want to especially thank the color guard for packing out at 5AM to ride the 6 hours to honor Krystal. Remember to never allow yourselves to fall back to old habits.

Your humble admirer,

Jason Griffith
Gwinnett County Juvenile Court