SWAMPSCOTT — Monday, Feb. 7 will mark 15 years since Marine Capt. Jennifer Harris, who grew up in the town, was killed in action in Iraq at the age of 28.
“She could have been a doctor, a lawyer or minister,” said her father, Raymond Harris, who still lives in the house Jennifer grew up in on Elwin Street. “She could have done anything in her life. ‘No. Marines, marines, marines.”
Jennifer was born on Nov. 7, 1978. As a teenager, she was very active, her father said. She was a sailing instructor for the Town of Swampscott, liked to go to church, worked at the Swampscott Public Library, volunteered for a couple of selectmen and attended various town meetings.
She was a drum major and a flutist, played sports and was always jogging or riding bikes.
“I could never keep up with her,” said Raymond. “I remember one time we went to Nahant, and I was still in Swampscott. I called her. ‘Dad, I’m in Nahant, come on, will you? Let’s go!’”
Jennifer Harris loved to travel.
“She traveled all over the country, the world, Germany, France. Never got to Scotland — that’s where I’m from originally,” said Raymond, who worked for 30 years at General Electric, then at Solimine Funeral Home and then for 15 years at Market Basket.
After graduating from Swampscott High School in 1996, Jennifer decided to attend the U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) in Annapolis, Md. To be accepted, she had to secure a nomination from the former U.S. Rep. Peter Torkildsen, who she volunteered for in her senior year of high school.
“I absolutely nominated Jennifer for the academy,” said Torkildsen to the Item in 2007. “She left such a strong impression on me. She was a bright young woman and she had her life planned out before most of us had any idea of what we were going to do.”
Jennifer succeeded in receiving the appointment and graduated from USNA in 2000. During her time at the academy, she became impressed by her friends who were planning to become Marines. After USNA, she chose to become a Marine Corps officer and a pilot.
Jennifer went to The Basic School (TBS) in Quantico, Va., where she trained for six months to develop the skills needed to effectively lead the Marines who would be under her command. After that she completed her Aviation Preflight Indoctrination training at the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, Fla., and her primary training to fly T-34 turbo propeller, fixed-wing aircraft at the Naval Station Corpus in Christi, Texas.
Jennifer Harris was selected to fly helicopters and underwent additional training at the Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Milton, Fla. as a member of Helicopter Training Squadron Eight (HT-8). She earned her “Wings of Gold” on Sept. 13, 2002.
“She was the first female pilot out of Massachusetts,” said Raymond.
Next came an assignment to a training squadron HMMT-164 in Camp Pendleton, Calif., where she learned to fly the CH-64 Sea Knight helicopter, known as the Battle Phrog.
After the CH-64 training, Jennifer Harris was assigned to the Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 364 (HMM-364) “Purple Foxes,” and quickly deployed for Operation Iraqi Freedom. She was the first female pilot to be deployed with the Purple Foxes. Her calling sign was “Dove.”
While with the Purple Foxes, Jennifer Harris was promoted twice — first, to the rank of first lieutenant, and then to the rank of captain. She returned to Iraq on tours of duty two more times.
Although she was stationed in California in Camp Pendleton and was engaged, Jennifer went home to spend Christmas 2007 with her parents. She didn’t leave the house much, wouldn’t borrow the car or go see her friends. She was about to go on her third tour of duty to Iraq.
“No, I want to stay with you,” she told her parents. “It might be the last time I’ll probably get to see you.”
On Feb. 7, 2007, Jennifer Harris was piloting a CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter while on a medical mission near Baghdad. Her crew was delivering blood for wounded Marines, when their helicopter was shot at from the ground by enemy combatants of al-Qaeda-linked Sunni group, the Islamic State, in Anbar Province, about 20 miles from Baghdad.
The helicopter was hit by a rocket and machine-gun fire. Harris tried three times to save the helicopter and her crew from crashing, said Raymond, who saw the video of the attack, but she was not able to. All seven people on board died.
An hour later, a van arrived at Elwin Street in Swampscott. Four or five men in uniform came out of it and headed to the Harris’ front door to deliver the news that their daughter was killed in action.
“I said to my wife, this can’t be happening. This is not true. I mean, really?” said Raymond Harris. “We never thought about it.”
U.S.M.C. Capt. Jennifer Harris has been awarded the Purple Heart, 17 Air Medals, two Navy Commendation Medals, Navy Achievement Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Presidential Unit Citation, Marine Corps Meritorious Unit Commendation, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal and other honors.
Raymond’s wife, Rosalie, died five years ago, after a 32-year battle with multiple sclerosis. He has recently lost his sister Maureen as well.
Raymond continues to share the story of his daughter. He attends veterans and Gold Star Family events, hosts a motorcycle rally every August and goes to the cemetery and talks to her every day.
Family and friends will gather for a service of remembrance of Jennifer Harris at her grave in the Swampscott Cemetery on Sunday, Feb. 6, to mark 15 years since her death. Her Gold Star Dad, Raymond Harris, welcomes the community to join him at the cemetery. There will be an honor guard of U.S. Marine Corp veterans at 11:30 a.m., followed by a service of remembrance at 1 m.p.
