Members of the 55^th Contracting Squadron, along with Col. Mark Williamson, vice commander of the 55^th Wing, gathered in the Ronald L. King Dining Facility June 24 to commemorate the 20^th anniversary of Staff. Sgt. Ronald King’s death.

King lost his life, along with 18 other Airmen, in the Khobar Towers attack on June 25, 1996, while serving his country in King Abdul Aziz Air Base in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

The dining facility was named after King in 2001.

“Sgt. King was the definition of service before self,” said Senior Master Sgt. Jeremy Swistak, superintendent of the 55^th CONS. “With only five months to retirement, he decided to postpone his plans and answer his nation’s call one more time. He even promised his wife and children it would be the last time he would ever leave them.”

While temporarily assigned at King Abdul Aziz AB, King worked to purchase materials and supplies for the fitness center renovation. Just days before returning home to his family, he was killed in a terrorist truck bomb explosion at Khobar Towers.

Swistak opened the memorial by speaking of King’s accomplishments in the Air Force, and the legacy he left behind. Attendees were also free to share stories and reminisce.

The memorial of King’s passing was all the more meaningful because his widow, Yvette King, attended, Swistak said.

“It’s got to be tough, but it’s important for her to come because it connects the family piece to service,” he said. “It’s important to mark these anniversaries so we don’t forget our great Airmen who sacrifice everything in defense of our freedom.”

Yvette King said she was equally intent on keeping her husband’s memory alive.

“Every year, it seems fresh – like he’s passed away for the first time,” she said. “This helps all of us keep the memory alive. Of course I will do it naturally, but for everyone in contracting to do it – it means so much to me.”

Offutt isn’t the only base working to preserve King’s legacy. The 9^th Contracting Squadron at Beale Air Force Base, Calif., recently dedicated their commander’s conference room to King.

“It says a lot about my husband,” Yvette King said. “I’m still learning things about him – things he had accomplished but hadn’t told me.”

King was the definition of an American Airman, Swistak said.

“'Staff Sgt. King clearly demonstrated with his sacrifice that he was committed to the ideals and principles shared by all in uniform,'” he said, quoting Maj. General Casey Blake, the deputy assistant secretary for contracting in the office of the assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition in Washington, D.C. “'The cause of freedom is much greater than one’s self and the cost of liberty is never free.'”

Swistak ended his comments by presenting Yvette King with a bouquet of flowers.

“Mrs. King,” he said, “You are forever part of the contracting and Air Force family.”

In addition to the dining facility named in his honor, King’s name is attached to the Staff Sgt. Ronald L. King Award for Outstanding Contingency Contracting, given yearly to the top contingency contracting officer in the Air Force.