Capt. Aaron J. Contreras, U.S.M.C (NCD)

Sherwood man dies in copter crash in Iraq

04/02/03

DANA TIMS

Family and friends Tuesday mourned the death of a U.S. Marine captain from Sherwood, who was killed Sunday when his UH-1 Huey helicopter crashed after takeoff in southern Iraq.

Capt. Aaron Contreras, a father of three, was 31. He was a member of the Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169, Marine Aircraft Group 39, based in Camp Pendleton, Calif.

Contreras, the second-youngest of five sons and a 1990 Sherwood High School graduate, was remembered as a devout family man.

"He loved God, he loved his wife and children, and he lived the kind of life he believed in," said his father, Edward Contreras, who was notified of his son's death Monday. "He was a fine young man."

A U.S. Defense Department news release said only that three Marines died, and a fourth was injured when their helicopter crashed at a supply and refueling point. Enemy fire was not involved, military officials said.

The news proved devastating in Sherwood, where Contreras family members are regarded as community stalwarts. They moved to Sherwood from San Jose, Calif., in 1979, searching for a quieter, roomier place to raise five sons.

Aaron Contreras, born on the Fourth of July in 1971, was highly regarded at Sherwood High School as an all-around student and athlete.

"He always had a smile on his face," said Rick Hassmann, a Sherwood school administrator when Contreras was a student body officer. "He was never down. He was that kind of kid."

Brian Burke, who quarterbacked Sherwood's football team when Contreras was a running back, remembered weekend basketball tournaments the Contreras family hosted on a court in their yard.

"I keep thinking about all his brothers, and his mom and dad, and the strong sense of family that they had," said Burke, now a Sherwood High teacher and varsity basketball coach. "Just knowing how important family was to the Contrerases, it's a hard thing to handle."

As a teenager, Contreras' faith burned brightly. When his family's congregation, St. Francis Catholic Church, became the first in the Portland area to maintain a 24-hour prayer vigil, Contreras volunteered.

"The service is called perpetual adoration, and Aaron showed up at exactly 11 p.m. every week to participate," said the Rev. Thomas McCarthy.

Serious about flying, family Following high school graduation, Contreras got serious about flying by attending Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Ariz., a nationally ranked, private aviation and aerospace school.

After college, while working at a part-time job in Portland, he met his future wife, Janelle Thorn, who grew up in Tigard. They married in 1991. The Contrerases had their first child, Aidan, in 1992. Taylor followed three years later. Ashley was born in 1999.

Even as a young boy, Contreras dreamed of flying.

" "Something about getting up in the air just captivated him," his father said.

Contreras enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps on April 21, 1997, to get more flying time. After 10 weeks of flight school, he received a commendation letter for finishing in the top 10 percent of his class.

The letter put him within reach of his dream of piloting a fixed-wing fighter. But his desire to remain closer to his wife, Janelle, and their children prompted him to change his career goals.

"When the thing he wanted to do most would have kept him away from home, he simply said, 'That's not acceptable,' " Edward Contreras said.

Contreras spent six months last year on an aircraft carrier in the Indian Ocean and elsewhere. He was deployed in late January from Camp Pendleton to the Persian Gulf.

"We talked on the phone, and he was already missing his family," his father said. "He said he wasn't scared; he just wanted to be with Janelle and the kids." Aaron Contreras told his father, "I have a job to do, and I'm going to come back home as soon as I do it."

His father paused a moment before adding, "He was a wonderful son. We're all going to miss him."

Funeral arrangements in Sherwood are pending. Staff writer Jim Tankersley contributed to this report. Dana Tims: 503-294-5973; danatims@news.oregonian.com