Foundation presents jersey to parents of U.S. Army 1st Lt. Evan Patrick Fitzgibbon

Photos by Thomas Lightbody | TK Photography

At halftime of its game against West Oaks Academy Friday, Oct. 28, Foundation Academy honored the family of U.S. Army 1st Lt. Evan Patrick Fitzgibbon, a Foundation football alum who died Aug. 9, in a Ranger School accident.

The school presented a framed jersey to Cindy and John Fitzgibbon.

Fitzgibbon, 23, grew up in Windermere and was living out his lifelong dream when he died in weather-induced training exercise at Yonah Mountain, near Dahlonega, Georgia. Five Ranger candidates were struck by a falling tree, and Fitzgibbon and Staff Sgt. George Taber were killed.

Fitzgibbon was an infantry officer assigned to the Infantry Basic Officer Leader Course, 199th Infantry “Leader Brigade” at Fort Benning, officials said in a Facebook statement. He was a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point and commissioned in May 2021. 

At the time of his death, Fitzgibbon held the rank of second lieutenant. He was posthumously promoted to first lieutenant and recognized as a graduate of the prestigious U.S. Army Ranger School.

Fitzgibbon had dreamed of attending West Point since the third grade. He also enrolled in the Civil Air Patrol — an auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force — and worked his way up the ranks. He earned the Billy Mitchell Award, given to Civil Air Patrol cadets who complete the second phase of the cadet program, and eventually became a commander.