Published on Thursday, March 23, 2006
in the Ft. Myers News-Press

Fallen Alva soldier a trooper forever

U.S. Army Cpl. Jimmy Lee Shelton dreamed of becoming a Florida state trooper, but was killed Dec. 3 in Iraq.

Shelton, 21, of Alva died when his camp in Bayji, Iraq, was struck by mortar fire. Eighteen other soldiers were injured, but only Shelton was killed.

On Wednesday, Shelton became the first person to become a state trooper posthumously.

"We heard he wanted to be a trooper," said FHP Lt. Doug Dodson. "We had troopers in Iraq. It hit close to home."

Troopers forwarded news stories about Shelton to FHP Col. Chris Knight in Tallahassee, and he began the process of recognizing the soldier.

"It's something appropriate," Knight said. "We were touched by his desire to be a trooper. We knew we needed to do the right thing and make him a part of the organization."

During the recognition ceremony, Billi Jo Shelton, 38, fought back tears.

"It's a bittersweet day," she said about the ceremony that honored the boy she raised as a son. "It's happy, but it is sad."

Biological mother Donna Manger, 41, said she wished there had been more time to spend with her son. The two had been estranged for nine years but had begun to reconcile in September.

"I have those moments," she said. "I tend to cry a lot. I have pictures of him on my desk. We didn't have a whole lot of time together."

Burgess Shelton, Jimmy Lee's father, said some days are better than others.

"I know he wanted to get this," he said of the ceremony. "But Jimmy wouldn't want us to be sad."

At the ceremony, both sets of parents were given a black trooper hat, a leadership coin, a certificate, a plaque and a teddy bear.

Knight said there were 1,811 troopers statewide before the ceremony, but that number rose to 1,812 when Jimmy Lee Shelton joined the ranks.

Given what he knew about how the soldier lived, Knight said chances were good that Jimmy would have become a state trooper and graduated from the academy if he had returned from Iraq.

Officials also awarded Shelton honorary membership in the Florida Association of State Troopers.

"Jimmy is looking down, and he is smiling at all of us," said Burgess Shelton, 41. "He was a great kid and a great son."

The family plans to honor his memory again at a barbecue at their Alva home on April 15. It would have been Jimmy's 22nd birthday.