Dear Editor,
I am a cousin of Jeramy Ailes and I felt the need to share with
the world what a wonderful cousin I was blessed to have. Well,
since I can’t tell the WHOLE world, I will settle for Gilroy.
Dear Editor,
I am a cousin of Jeramy Ailes and I felt the need to share with the world what a wonderful cousin I was blessed to have. Well, since I can’t tell the WHOLE world, I will settle for Gilroy.
Jeramy was always quiet at family gatherings. For a while there, we wondered if he would ever come out of his shell. He did come out of it soon enough and one of the last times I saw him he replied, “I don’t have a shell!” while posing over a mutual birthday cake for both of our birthdays. Jeramy could always make me laugh … whether it be from quoting our grandparents or saying “Wayne Newton” just to get a chuckle. Sometimes it seemed like Jeramy did things just to make himself laugh, but if he only knew how much his outbursts and smiles meant to me and the rest of my family he would surely smile that electric smile up in Heaven where I know he is.
It is really hard for me to understand why he was taken from us. I am so proud to say that Jeramy Ailes is my cousin because he fought and died for this country. Not many people have the courage to go over to Iraq but he did. He changed the lives of children over there, just like he changed the lives of us back home. Had I known when I woke up on Nov. 15, 2004 that my life would change forever, I would have opted to stay in bed. But life goes on, and we all must “suck it up” as Jeramy would say.
Presently I have a sister in the Air Force, Aimee Santos. Aside from Jeramy, she is one of the most brave people I know. She offered to escort Jeramy back home for the services. My mother and her said a few things to each other that brought tears to my eyes. My mother told Aimee, “You’re our hero for being so brave.” My sister replied, “No Mom, Jeramy’s our hero.” And my mom said, “But your his hero for bringing him home.”
Our family has had so much support from the community and I would just like to thank everybody. I have never experienced death so close to home before, and it is such a comfort to know that the community is there willing to help out the Ailes family. On behalf of friends and family of Jeramy Ailes everywhere, I would like to say thank you to everybody that has helped out. Jeramy deserves nothing less.
Brittney Santos, Gilroy
