1971 to 2025: The Forgotten Sacrifices Project
By Aaron Flahaut, President & Founder
In 1971, a U.S. Air Force helicopter went down outside Wall, South Dakota, claiming the lives of six Security Police members from Ellsworth Air Force Base. They were performing their duties, moving between missile sites in service to the nation, when the worst happened… the helicopter crashed, claiming the lives of the Airmen. For over fifty years, their names were absent from any national memorial.
When I began researching their story, I was moved by the depth of their sacrifice and by the quiet void that surrounded it. These men died in uniform, on duty, yet their service was not recognized alongside others who had fallen in combat. I spent the next year working with families, advocates, and officials to ensure that they would receive the honor they deserved. In 2025, those six names were formally added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C.
But when the ceremony ended, and the names unveiled, I felt something unexpected. Gratitude, most definitely, but also a lingering sense that there was still more to do. Because for every one of those six names, there are countless others. Men and women across every branch of service who died not in combat, but while training, maintaining, transporting, guarding, or simply carrying out the duties that keep our military strong. Their stories are scattered across decades, often preserved in family memories or small-town newspapers.
That realization was the beginning of the Forgotten Sacrifices Project.
I reached out to others who shared this conviction: financial professionals, communications strategists, policy experts, and military peers who understood service. Together, we formed a team united by one belief: that every life given in service should be remembered, honored, and recorded.
Our mission is not to distinguish between “combat” and “non-combat,” but to close the gap between the two. We work to ensure that sacrifice, in all its forms, is seen and valued. Through storytelling, and advocacy we aim to build a living archive where families can preserve the legacies of their loved ones, and where future generations can learn about the often unseen acts of service that sustain our nation.
We envision a future where remembrance is complete, and where no family feels that their loss is invisible, and no service member’s name fades from our collective memory.
The Forgotten Sacrifices Project is a promise. A promise to the families who have waited decades for recognition. A promise to the service members who gave their lives faithfully, even when few were watching. And a promise to our nation: that we will remember all who served, and all who gave.