Soldier slain in Niger is laid to rest
The death of Sgt. La David Johnson has been at the center of a political furor.
COOPER CITY, Fla. — Mourners remembered not only a U.S. soldier whose combat death in Africa led to a political fight between President Trump and a Florida congresswoman, but also his three comrades who died with him.
Some of the 1,200 mourners exiting the church after Saturday’s service for Sgt. La David Johnson, 25, said a portrait of Johnson was joined onstage by photographs of Staff Sgts. Bryan C. Black, 35, of Puyallup, Wash.; Jeremiah W. Johnson, 39, of Springboro, Ohio; and Dustin M. Wright, 29, of Lyons, Ga. The four died Oct. 4 in Niger when they were attacked by militants linked to Islamic State. Johnson’s family asked reporters to remain outside for the service.
“We have to remember that one thing — that it wasn’t just one soldier who lost his life,” said Berchel Davis, a retired police officer who has six children in the military. He said the minister who conducted the service and Rep. Frederica Wilson both made that a part of their message. “That was a good gesture on everyone’s part.”
He and others said the fight between Trump and Wilson was never mentioned during the service.
Johnson’s pregnant widow, Myeshia, held the arm of an Army officer as she led her two young children and other family members, all dressed in white, into the Christ the Rock Community Church in suburban Fort Lauderdale for her husband’s funeral. The modern hymn “I’m Yours” could be heard coming from inside.
Johnson’s sister, Angela Ghent, said after the service that it didn’t “feel real” that her brother was killed.
“It hasn’t hit me yet. I haven’t had time to grieve,” said Ghent, who last spoke to her brother a few weeks before he died. She said she was glad mourners got to hear about Johnson’s love for bicycles and cars, not just his military service.
The public squabble between Trump and Wilson had taken the focus off Johnson, whose widow is due to have a daughter in January. The couple, who were high school sweethearts, already had a 6-year-old daughter, Ah’Leeysa, and 2-year-old son, La David Jr. An online fundraiser has raised more than $600,000 to pay for the children’s education.
Johnson’s mother died when he was 5, and he was raised by his aunt. His family enrolled him in 5,000 Role Models, a project Wilson began in 1993 when she was an educator that pairs African American boys with mentors who prepare them for college, vocational school or the military.
“We teach them to be a good man, a good husband and a good father. Sgt. Johnson typified all of those characteristics,” said mourner Carlton Crawl, a public school consultant who is one of the program’s mentors.
In 2013, a year before he enlisted, Johnson was featured in a local TV newscast for his ability to do bicycle tricks, earning the nickname “Wheelie King.” He said he learned his tricks by going slow.
“Once you feel comfortable, you could just ride all day,” he told the interviewer.
The war of words between the president and Wilson began Tuesday when the Miami-area Democrat said Trump told Myeshia Johnson in a phone call that her husband “knew what he signed up for” and that the president didn’t appear to know his name, details later backed up by Johnson’s aunt. Wilson was riding with Johnson’s family to meet the body and heard the call.