Fernandina Flag Line, Services To Honor Fallen Soldier

Wave flags Dec. 19 to honor soldier, Spc. Kelly Mixon of Fernandina Beach, killed in action, fighting for the United States of America in Operation Enduring Freedom.

Oxley-Heard Funeral Home, Fernandina Beach, Florida
Spc. Kelly Mixon will lie in state at Oxley-Heard Funeral Home, 1305 Atlantic Ave., Fernandina.

A flag line will form along Fernandina Beach’s Eighth Street on Sunday, December 19, 2010 at 12:30 pm as a tribute to a fallen soldier. People will turn out to wave flags in honor of a local American solider and son who lost his life fighting for our country in Operation Enduring Freedom.

Specialist Kelly Joseph Mixon of Fernandina Beach had been deployed in Afghanistan and was killed in action on December 8, 2010.  He was a United States Army sniper.  Also killed was Sgt. James A. Ayube II, 25, of Salem, Massachusetts.

Spc. Mixon was 23 years old, a 2005 Fernandina Beach High School graduate, and former drummer with the FBHS Mighty Pirate Marching Band. Numerous news accounts describe his passion for music. He also was a member of the D-line (drum line) of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars during the 2005-2006 football season.  (Watch video clip from YOUTUBE of D-line tribute to Specialist Mixon from recent Raiders-Jaguars game December 12, 2010.)

Florida Governor Charlie Crist has proclaimed and directed that all State and National flags fly at half-staff, in honor of Specialist Kelly Mixon, on December 19, 2010.

Specialist Mixon’s body will be transported from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to Jacksonville International Airport (expected to take place on Saturday, Dec. 18, 2010). Upon arrival, his body will be escorted by motorcade to Fernandina Beach. His remains will lie in state at Oxley-Heard Funeral Home at 1305 Atlantic Avenue, Fernandina Beach. The public is welcomed to pay their respects. Please check Oxley-Heard’s website for the most up-to-date information. Visitors to the Oxley-Heard website can also send condolences to the family online. Those who knew him are invited to share his life story.

On Sunday, December 19, 2010, Specialist Mixon’s body will be transported from Oxley-Heard Funeral Home (1305 Atlantic Avenue, Fernandina), along Eighth Street to First Baptist Church of Fernandina Beach, located at 1600 South 8th Street, where he will lie in state at the altar from 1 pm to 2 pm. Funeral services will then commence at 2 pm and the public is welcomed to attend.

Family friends and supporters are asking the local community to form a flag line along Eight Street to honor this fallen soldier and the Mixon family.  Be on Eighth Street waving flags at 12:30 pm Sunday, December 19, 2010, a tribute as the hearse passes by from Oxley-Heard to First Baptist Church.

Specialist Mixon will be laid to rest with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

News articles detailing this young man’s fine character and accomplishments, as well as the official obituary, can be read at the Fernandina Beach News-Leader website.   The Florida Times-Union has also written about Kelly Mixon’s honorable life.

Oxley-Heard Funeral Home’s phone number is 904-261-3644, for more information. First Baptist Church’s phone number is 904-261-3617.

DONATE TO SOLDIER ANGELS’

In memory of Specialist Kelly Mixon, in lieu of flowers, gifts may be sent in his honor to Soldiers’ Angels‘, 112 Greenhill Road, Ramseur, NC 27316, or make online donations through the Soldiers’ Angels website. The organization is a network of volunteers “providing aid and comfort to the men and women of the United States Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, veterans and their families.”

By The Editor

Observations of island life, news & opinion by W.B. Lawson. Wendy has enjoyed the laid-back Amelia Island lifestyle since 1993. Her professional background began at a newspaper in NY. She then worked in PR/Investor Relations at Fortune 500 company, and later became a managing editor at an equity research publishing firm. She was Series 7 licensed while with Merrill Lynch Private Client Group.