Jacob Noal Fritz

West Point, 2005

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by 1LT Andrew Kim on January 25, 2007:

I first met Jacob at the start of my Yearling Year at West Point when I scrambled to Company A1 in August 2002. We instantly became friends and since then, we have become the best of friends ? some would even say brothers. What drew us together were actually our differences. I found out that he grew up on a farm in a small town called Verdon in Nebraska. Growing up in Southern California, I had never met a true farm boy. It was always exciting to meet new people and Jacob was no exception. His warmth, down-to-earth nature, and kindness accelerated the growth of our friendship. There are so many memories that I have had with Jacob, and I am truly grateful for all those good times. One of our first activities we participated together was intramural boxing. As we represented Company A1, our training and practices resulted in our company becoming regimental champions. Jacob always put his heart and will into every fight and I greatly admired this. He was a warrior and his athleticism distinguished him in all sports. During the first semester of Yearling Year, we decided to become roommates second semester. As his roommate, I was able to get to know Jacob on a closer level. He was the first person that I met that loved the candy ?Hot Tamales? just as much as me. This is when I also learned more about his family and his years growing up. I became very curious about farm life so he invited me to visit the farm the summer of 2003. I gladly accepted the invitation and made my first visit to Nebraska that Fourth of July weekend. Jacob?s family welcomed me into their home and I was able to meet Noala, Lyle, Dan, and Ethan. That weekend was a first of many things. I baled hay, drank from a fresh water stream, ate berries off a tree, and shot skeet. Jake showed me around Verdon which didn?t take very long and then I really understood ?small town.? They even got the entire Fritz family together for a potluck, so I ended up meeting most of Jacob?s uncles, aunts, cousins, and family friends. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly and I knew where Jake got his great qualities. I had an amazing time those couple of days and I loved the farm so much that I came back a couple more times. The farm has become another home for me. Another fellow company mate, David Cho, became close friends with Jacob and me. We did just about everything together. The three of us soon became inseparable and we shared every momentous event at West Point, starting with Yearling Winter Weekend. 500th Night, Ring Weekend, and 100th Night were no different. The fact that the three of us wanted to branch Field Artillery brought us even closer. Branch Night was truly memorable when Jacob yelled for joy in Eisenhower Hall as he opened the envelope to find cannon insignia. He was so worried that he wouldn?t get Artillery as his branch. I can also remember how we celebrated Post Night at the Firstie Club. Jacob had chosen to post Fort Richardson, Alaska and he was beaming with excitement the whole night. While I posted Hawaii, Dave also posted Fort Richardson and I was happy that at least two of us would stay together. The three of us went on so many weekend trips to all sorts of places. Jacob visited my hometown of Irvine, California winter break of 2004-2005. He stayed a couple of days at my home and was able to see where I grew up. We definitely came from different backgrounds. We celebrated New Year?s Eve at Las Vegas and had a great time. We were going through our gambling phase and consequently made a couple trips to Atlantic City, Mohegan Sun, and Foxwoods. Then we went through a skiing phase and went on several vacations to different mountains. Any long weekend, we went to Killington, Vermont. Dave and I tried to get Jacob to learn to snowboard but he was adamant that he would only ski. His gun-metal colored Dodge Ram HEMI was our only transportation out of West Point. Jacob loved to drive and all the road trips we had were good times as well. Any chance that we had to get away from West Point to decompress, we took the opportunity. The guys in our company were always willing to get together for a couple of drinks; maybe a little more for Jacob. He loved his Bud Light. He was almost always the last one standing and usually took on the role of the caretaker. He would always say that drinking was a marathon, not a sprint. On graduation day, I remember giving Jacob a hug and he had tears in his eyes. I knew he had been waiting for that day to come and how it meant to have accomplished so much at West Point. He made everyone so proud. Both our families were there to congratulate each other. Noala and Lyle had tears in their eyes as well. It was such a momentous day for everyone. All of the guys were saddened that we would go our separate ways after graduation, but Dave, Jacob and I managed to stay together a little longer. Field Artillery Officer Basic Course would bring us back together. Dave was the first to go, I was the middle class, and Jacob followed right behind. Over the five months of Officer Basic Course, we had 3 months together. We learned to skydive at Chickasha, Oklahoma and visited Oklahoma City a couple of weekends. We even made a trip to the Fritz farm where Dave got to experience farm life for the first time. It was a sad day when we each left Officer Basic Course for our future posts. We continued to stay in touch over the phone and even made plans to come visit each other. Even when we deployed, we e-mailed back and forth to keep tabs on each other. We talked about getting together when our tours finished and it hurts so much to know that you are gone. I can go on and on of all the memories I have with Jacob. All I can say is that he made everyone smile. He was a good man with a kind heart who was always willing to give a lending hand. Serving in the Army as an Artillery Officer was something he always wanted to do and he lived that dream. Jacob died serving his country, making a difference in the world. Jacob, you are truly a hero and I will miss you. You will always be in my thoughts and memories. Rest in peace my friend and my brother.

admin