FINGER, TN, USA U.S. Army SGT, GROUP SUPPORT BATTALION, 5TH SPECIAL FORCES GROUP, FORT CAMPBELL, KY HADITHA DAM, IRAQ 12/04/2006
Sergeant Dustin M. Adkins died on December 3, 2006 from injuries sustained after the US Marine Corps CH46 helicopter he was riding in made emergency water landing In Haditha, western Al Anbar Province. Dustin was assigned to the Army’s Group Support Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group, Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Dustin was a dental assistant. He was on his second tour.
A native of Finger, Tennessee, Dustin would tell everyone on the phone not to worry about him, that everything would be OK. He never worried about anything and was very laid-back all the time. He was always calm. He loved parachuting from airplanes and joked that he’d like to get his wife to jump with him some time. . During high school, he worked at a Sonic Drive-In, where he met his bride-to-be, a manager. He pestered her until she went out with him.
Dustin was crazy about his kids Matthew, age 3, and Atlanta. age 2 at the time of his death. He would take them to the park, wrestle with them, love, and enjoy them. His daughter had him wrapped around her finger from the moment she was born. He wanted a little girl so bad that he didn’t even mind it when his wife, an avid Atlanta Braves fan, named their daughter Atlanta. Dustin loved baseball also, but was a Red Sox fan.
After completing basic combat training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri and advanced individual training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, Dustin was assigned to the GSB, 5th SFG(A). He deployed on his second tour of duty in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in Aug 2006. Adkins’ awards and decorations include the Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon and Parachutist Badge.
Dustin is survived by his parents, and wife Tiffany, son Matthew, and daughter Atlanta