PORT ANGELES — Former California Gov. Gray Davis, whom Army Capt. Joseph William Schultz once worked for as an aide, remembered the fallen soldier Thursday for his “bright spirit and enduring commitment to integrity and public service.”
Capt. Schultz, a Green Beret and the only child of Port Angeles businesswoman Betsy Reed Schultz, died Sunday in Wardak province in Afghanistan after an improvised explosive device hit his Humvee. He was 36.
Two other soldiers died in the attack: Staff Sgt. Martin R. Apolinar, 28, of Glendale, Ariz., and Sgt. Aaron J. Blasjo, 25, of Riverside, Calif.
They were assigned to the 3rd Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, N.C.
Capt. Schultz worked in Davis’ Washington, D.C., office and later as a press aide in Sacramento, according to The Sacramento Bee.
CBS in Sacramento said Capt. Schultz “appeared to be on a political fast track” as he worked with Davis, a Democrat who was governor from 1999 to 2003.
After the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Schultz joined the Army and was in the middle of his third tour in Afghanistan when he was killed, the news agency said.
Davis said in a statement released Thursday:
“As a soldier, Joseph paid the ultimate price for our freedom: He gave his life.
“While Joseph’s sacrifice has already been made, let us not forget the sacrifice that his family will be making for the rest of their lives — having lost one of their own.
“While we can never repay them for their sacrifice, we can honor Joseph and his family by committing to be of service in his memory.”
Capt. Schultz was born in Illinois but was mostly raised in Sacramento, said his mother, who operated The Tudor Inn bed and breakfast until last year.
She is also a former Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce president who has been as an organizer of the Festival of Trees, an annual benefit for the Olympic Medical Center Foundation, among other civic duties.
In Washington state, Gov. Chris Gregoire has ordered flags be lowered to half-staff this coming Tuesday in honor of Capt. Schultz.
He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Va.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, June 11, at Olympic Cellars Winery, 255410 U.S. Highway 101. The service will be open to the public.
Capt. Schultz’s remains were flown Tuesday to Dover Air Force Base, Del., where his mother and uncle, Port Angeles art gallery owner Bob Stokes, went to join them.
Capt. Schultz did not have a wife or children.
