A1C Dylan Bautista
From Heartache to Heritage
3:42 AM, 19 June, 2021.
Phone Rings. It’s my work phone, and it’s intentionally loud. It was suddenly and unexpectedly a holiday weekend, and I had had a handful of beers to celebrate. I didn’t expect much trouble on this day. I was groggy when I picked up the call, but the Deputy's words were an instant wake-up and the greatest fear as a First Sergeant.
“MSgt Waterloo, this is Deputy Smith. I’m here with your Airman, Dylan Bautista.”
The faces and a recall roster flashed before my eyes. I was trying to find out what flight he was on. It clicked…Bravo Flight. The same mission I started my Air Force career in, co-incidentally. Now oriented, I said, “Ok, how can I help?”…thinking he’d gotten arrested or something, it would have been way out of character, but anything can happen, anything but what the back of my head told me this law enforcement officer was about to say.
“Well, sir, I am sorry to tell you that Dylan is dead. He had an accident on his motorcycle; he was struck from behind…I got here within minutes, and EMS was right behind me, but he was dead when we arrived.”
I asked him a few more who, what, where, and when questions because I knew the next phone call would be to my boss, who was out at Maxwell AFB, having just finished a leadership course to prepare for his next assignment. I called him, and when I did, it was 2:48 in the morning at Maxwell. Having just finished a class, I am sure he’d just gone to bed.
I told him what had happened, answered his immediate questions, and discussed how we would inform the squadron. He would take the officer side and up, the Director of Operations, the Flight Commander, and up to the Group and Wing Commanders. I would inform the Senior Enlisted Leader, SMSgt Jonathan, and a few selected NCOs.We would keep a tight lid on the news until we could get the whole squadron together later that morning.
My first call after I hung up with the boss was with a mentor and fellow First Sergeant. I honestly didn’t know what to do at this point or say other than, “Dan, I’m sorry to wake you at 4 in the morning, but I just lost an Airman.” I called the boss; he knows what’s up. I’m drafting all the right paperwork. I’m going to call the SEL (Senior Enlisted Leader) and ask what to do next.
His following words were a lifesaver in a way. He said, “Ben, you’ve got this, you’re doing great, there’s a checklist in the first sergeant binder. Open it up and go down the checklist.” The military has a checklist or a form for nearly everything imaginable, especially this.
The following hours and days were a blur. Still, I clearly remember around eight that morning, having gotten word the team we sent to Bautista’s mother’s house could not find her to notify her in person because the local police department already had, over the phone. I went into my office, closed my door, sank to my knees, and cried awhile. It helped.
We assigned Casualty Assistance Officers (CAO) and a Person Authorized for Disposition (PAD) of remains. The CAO was a dear friend. She was the Bautista family’s point of contact with the Air Force and the unit. The CAO helps with the family’s needs and ensures the Air Force is on the same page as the family. The PAD was Capt Holly Z, someone I had known since we were both Airmen 16 years before. Her job was to inventory Dylan’s things and ensure they all got to his family.
In this memorial ceremony, I had one job. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. In a military memorial, there is a roll call. In that roll call, we call out the names of certain members of the unit who have volunteered to be present at the memorial. I called the names of those present, and they all stood up and said, “Here, Sir.”
Then came the hard job. “Airman Baustista”….pause…no answer. He must not have heard me, so I say it louder, “Airman First Class Dylan Bautista” …pause…still no answer…One last time, just in case…”Airman First Class Dylan A. Bautista”
Nobody, not even my wife (until she reads this), knows that I practiced those lines for days. Every time I had a quiet moment in the car, shower, or even in my head. I couldn’t cry; I had to get it all out first. So, I rehearsed, over and over, until I was numb. Until I could do it without faltering. It worked great until the day of, seeing those two family members. I knew I had to do more for Dylan and his family.
I approached Will shortly after he took command. Knocked on his door, and with my trademark, he would grow to despise. “Hey, Sir, got a minute?” I asked him if he wanted to dedicate our new building to Airman’s Bautista. Will said that would be a great idea and told me to make it happen.
I had no idea how to name a building on any DoD installation, let alone an Army installation. This is where knowing people and knowing there’s a checklist for that comes in handy. I approached the Air Force building custodian; he pointed me to the Army. As they always do, the Army produced a checklist and several different forms. It required tons of forms, a lot of wet ink, and tons of patience.
We finally got it over the line in early spring 2022. We had planned a building dedication and invited his family for that holiday weekend. It was a flawlessly and beautifully executed ceremony, and Airman Bautista’s mother, Vikki, got to nail her son’s name tape to the wall. Since the building was new, it was the very first name tape to go up. In the future, every Reaper, no matter rank or length of time, can put their name tape up on the wall.
I’m prouder of that building and the work that went into giving Dylan a permanent legacy on Ft. Eisenhower than almost anything else I’ve done in the Air Force. I know the military names a lot of things after former service members—tanks, Ships, Buildings, Gazebos, Armored Fighting Vehicles, Airplanes, and other things. There are many buildings like Bautista Hall across the DoD.
That building, though, that one is for Dylan, and I’m REALLY proud of that.
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Excellent post! Very well written too . . .
You wanted to do all the right things, and the checklist just showed you how.
I'm thinking of seeing my name on a gazebo. In English novels that's where all the Hanky Panky occurs.