The "Real" behind "Reality" TV

Lt. Col. Frank Latt, Airman Bobby Bonello (back), Thad Forester, Matt Rogers, SSgt Johnnie Yellock, pay tribute to SrA Mark Forester in Haleyville, AL, in January, 2011


It's no big surprise that most "reality" TV is made up of a bunch of contrived moments. One thing I enjoyed about one of my last assignments was the ACTUALITY of it.

Last January, for "Coming Home," we were fortunate to be invited to capture a planned tribute to a fallen hero, Senior Airman Mark Forester, who was killed in Afghanistan while trying to save a fallen comrade. Paying tribute to Mark in his home town of Haleyville, Alabama were US Marines Lt. Col. Frank Latt, and fellow airmen, Bobby Bonello & Johnnie Yellock. It was during that extended weekend when it hit many of us civilian clods on the crew the level of sacrifice our military makes on our behalf as part of their oaths to do their jobs well.

Mark's brother, Thad, reports that Johnnie Yellock recently suffered serious injury while deployed in Afghanistan. In the brief time I was around him, Johnnie revealed a great sense of humor, true kindness to his friends, the Forester family, and the demeanor of a real warrior. My thoughts are with Johnnie for a full recovery. He is a good man.

Here's a link to Thad's post about the incident:
http://markaforester.com/?postID=1718&ssgt-johnnie-yellock-injured-in-ied-accident

Comments

  1. ThadNovember 1, 2012 at 9:51 AM

    Thanks for posting Tim. It was great having you and the crew in Haleyville.

    ReplyDelete

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