Semper Fi: More Than a Motto – The Man
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Most of us met Troy Mitchell on October 28, 2009. That was the day he was shot while working on a car outside Guardian Courts Apartments in west Jackson. It was the day before he would die. No one knew him better than his better half. “He was a humble hero,” said Kelly Mitchell, his wife of almost 25-years. “You don’t think those two words can go together but they do.” Kelly and their family were the only things on earth he loved more than the Marines. He became a Marine at just seventeen. “From the time I met him that was his plan,” recalled Kelly. Both children of the Air Force, Troy and Kelly met in Grand Forks, North Dakota at fourteen. They married when they were just nineteen. Kelly recalls how she first learned that her “friend” Troy was in love with her. “He’d written me a letter saying that he loved me and he’d loved me a long time,” she said. “I was like wow!” Marriage at first meant separation as Kelly finished her nursing degree at Union University in Jackson while Troy served in California and overseas. They made their first home at Camp Pendleton, California. And as quickly as their family grew, the devoted dad’s career advanced in the Corps. His dress blues held the proof of his steady promotions, accomplishments and bravery. Troy set himself apart even in the Marines and was chosen for Force Recon. “Force Recon to the Marine Corps is the same as the SEALS are to the Navy and the Green Berets and Special Forces are to the Army,” said Russ Martz, Commandant of the Marine Corps League. Its members are elite and highly trained in every aspect of combat. They are prepared for any situation on land, air and sea. “You don’t join Force Recon. You don’t select Force Recon. Force Recon selects you,” stated Martz. As Force Recon, Troy earned a Bronze Star with Valor for his service in Desert Storm. But it was during the Desert Storm we did not see on television. “He said by the time the ground troops invaded, I had already done by job because his job was the recon,” said Kelly. “You sneak in there, see what’s going on, sneak back out.” For years, Troy served in the most dangerous of situations. His last assignment with the Corps was at the Pentagon with what Kelly called a “safe” desk job. That all changed September 11, 2001. She waited for six hours that day to find out that he was OK. “When I opened that door, it was profound relief,” recalled Kelly. “I thought that was going to probably be the worst day of my life. But it didn’t end up being.” Retiring as a Master Sergeant after 22-years, the Mitchells moved home to Jackson to be close to Kelly’s family. And the decorated Marine became an unassuming locksmith. “It really did catch me off guard,” said Kelly. “I thought he’d need a high adrenaline job.” But the intricate work fascinated Troy, who once again was far from ordinary in his chosen field. “He went into the safe and security side of it, forensic locksmithing, so he could investigate cases of fraud like auto theft or bank robbery,” said Kelly. It was only the night calls that made Kelly nervous. Otherwise, she felt confident that her combat-tried, safety conscious Marine who was licensed to carry a concealed weapon could hold his own, even while working in areas of town that some locksmiths refused to go. “There were areas, Guardian Courts included, that he would not go at night,” said Kelly. “He would make arrangements with people to go in the daytime.” It was a daytime call that was his last. Troy was shot around ten in the morning, just minutes after talking with his son, who was serving in Iraq. “Troy told Josh, ‘I’m at my next job and I’ll have to let you go for now. But I’ll talk to you later,'” remembered Kelly. “And that was the job where Troy was shot.” The last memories are the ones cherished most, like their last complete family picture with all seven of their sons. Joey, Josh, Treaven, Landon, Chance, Reed and Gabriel now range in age from 28 to 7. Then there is their last ride where friends and strangers from far and wide lined the street for miles to salute a man who had truly earned a hero’s farewell. “I was saying goodbye to my everything and to know that others thought so highly of him was a wonderful thing,” said Kelly. Troy was laid to rest at the Mitchell family cemetery near their home in South Madison County.
