TOP CHARACTER STRENGTHS

JUDGEMENT 

LCPL Christopher Phoenix-Jacob Levy was killed on December 10th 2011. He is remembered for having a multitude of strengths including: leadership, love, perseverance, forgiveness, hope and perseverance. 

He was 11 when 9/11 happened & that is when he decided to become a Marine and be a part of getting the ones responsible for the attack. He joined in 2009 & worked hard to become a Marine. His 1st deployment was late 2010 to May 2011. He was on the MEU & was sent to Afghanistan for combat. It was on that deployment Bin Laden was killed, he came home Mother's day 2011. He told me & showed me a map, "mom, we were here outside the compound when Bin Laden was killed. We (Marines) did all the work, the Seals got the glory. LOL!" To set a goal at 11 years old and accomplish it 9 years later, just shows he has determination, focus and not a quitter.

He believed in teamwork and fairness and sometimes that meant he had to take charge and be the leader. He did that with the Native Youth in his community and his JROTC class in school. The youth looked up to him, depended on an him and trusted him to do the right thing. His younger brothers would even wait for him to come home to resolve disputes between them.

His mother told him if he wanted to join the military then he needed to research it and present his findings to her. He did so, he joined the delayed entry program, spoke to other Marines & other branches, weighed the pros/cons and convinced her this was the right decision. When she asked him, "Why would you apply for a job & work for a boss that you don't agree with?" His response was, "Mom, it's just not about that man in that White House, but for the lady & the two boys in this yellow house and others who can't defend themselves." At that point she knew her little boy had grown up, had made the right choice and he was the type of person that should be defending our country.

Christopher's smile could brighten any room. You never had to tell him to be nice or help with things. If he was present and saw someone that needed help of something needed to be done he did it and never asked for acknowledgment. Since his death, even his Marine brothers talk about how he would just jump in and do things without being asked and they could depend on him to have their back. Hence why they say it was easy to call his mother, mom, because he always talked about her and told them they always had a home in NC. They could tell where he got his good and loving nature. 

Jacob could find the good in anyone, even when others couldn't. He believed everyone deserved a second chance and would help them achieve their goals to better themselves. He would share experiences that may have caused resulted in a bad outcome for himself in hopes that someone else wouldn't have to experience the disappointment/hurt.

His HOPE is what kept his faith and beliefs strong. Which in turn he had appreciation and gratitude for people and things in life. With his sense of humor, he could make people laugh and forget the bad things going on because he always found a blessing.