The Family of PFC Tony Potter Jr. has requested the Patriot Guard Riders Stand with them as they Honor their Hero. This will be a Dignified transfer of PFC Potter upon arrival in Tulsa. We will escort PFC Potter from OKANG to Funeral Home in Okmulgee.
OKMULGEE, Okla - Private First Class Tony Potter, Jr. was killed in Afghanistan on Friday, along with two other Oklahoma National Guard members. On Tuesday, his parents sat down with 2NEWS to share memories of their son.
"I couldn't ask for a better son," says Tony Potter, Sr. He calls his son the very part of himself.
Born three months too early, Potter, Sr. says his son, known as T.J., wasn't the biggest kid in his class. But he was all heart and determination, "He was a fighter. He fought through everything. He excelled at everything that he did. I'm was so proud of him - I still am."
The Okmulgee High School football player accomplished a lot in 20 years. He took his football team to the state championship. He also married his high school sweetheart, Emily Potter. She is expecting the couple's first baby.
Despite his parent's objection, Tony Potter, Sr. says T.J. always wanted to be a soldier. He enlisted in the National Guard before graduation.
His mother, Yvonne Potter, says he watch movies and documentaries about the war, because he wanted to be prepared when he deployed. T.J. had been in Afghanistan just two months before he was killed. According the Oklahoma National Guard, Potter is the youngest member to die in battle over the past decade.
"He was the rock of the family. He held everyone together," says Yvonne Potter. Potter, Sr. adds, "If he felt like we were drifting apart, he would bring us back together. He was our glue. You could always count on him for everything. For this to happen to him - it's just not right. I want my son back"
Friday night is Homecoming for Okmulgee High School. During a special half-time show in the slain soldier's honor, the school will retire his jersey number.