United States Air Force Special Operations Combat Controller Jack Fanning joined the military in 1997 and prospered in a pipeline of vigorous schools, including Combat Dive School, Air Traffic Control School, Airborne and Military Freefall School, Survival School, and Combat Control School. Throughout his career, he was assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field AFB, Florida, as well as partaking in several deployments to South America prior to the horrific events of September 11, 2001. After the attacks, Fanning was deployed to Afghanistan on five separate occasions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. In addition, he was deployed to Iraq in support of Iraqi Freedom. After eight years, in 2005, Fanning became a Combat Control Course Tactics Instructor at Pope AFB in North Carolina.
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With his extensive expertise, Fanning was one of the most seasoned members in his field. He loved everything about his career and strived to be among the best of the best, which led to him to join an elite unit in 2008. He has been awarded with numerous awards and commendations throughout his career, including a Bronze Star Medal, a Joint Service Commendation Medal with Valor Device, and an Air Force Commendation Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters, among many others. Two years later, on January 11, 2010, Fanning parachuted into a blacked-out drop zone with his teammates in which he sustained a C4 spinal cord injury, leaving him with quadriplegia.Â
Currently, Fanning is passionate about helping and honoring fellow Veterans, Gold Star, First Responders, and their families. In 2012, he founded BrothersKeepers, a nonprofit organization committed to empowering Veterans, First Responders, Gold Star Families, and others called to serve. Tunnel to Towers has relieved Fanning of the financial burden of a mortgage, as well as modified his home into a Smart Home to make it more accessible and catered to his individual needs. He is grateful to be able to navigate his home more independently. Finally, United States Air Force Special Operations Combat Controller Jack Fanning would like others to know that although his time in the military was cut short, he was gifted with a calling and made it his mission to help other Veterans, First Responders, and Gold Star Families. He continues to assist hundreds of families in need through his nonprofit organization, BrothersKeepers, which provides experiential retreats and support to wounded Veterans and First Responders, and Gold Star families.Â