Friends speak of Army Captain's legacy

Hamden (WTNH) - An army captain, from Hamden, is being mourned after losing his life in Afghanistan. But, some friends of Benjamin Sklaver are sharing some unique details about their friend; details that help show what type of person Sklaver was.

It's a rare opportunity to be invited to peer into someone's soul. But friends of Army Captain Sklaver want to make sure the public gets that chance.

"He saw himself as a combatant for peace. He was not a warrior. He was there to spread peace in the world," said Captain Sklaver's friend Jake Herrle.

The 32-year-old Hamden native was killed in an ambush in Afghanistan last Friday. To understand his commitment to serving, you must realize his dedication and drive to help others continued when his uniform would hang in a closet.

In 2007, after returning to Atlanta after a deployment to Uganda, Africa, Captain Sklaver started the non-profit group "ClearWater Initiative."

The non-profit group's goal was to provide clean drinking water solutions to thousands of people who were at risk of becoming ill, or worse, dying due to waterborne diseases. Volunteers, and success, seemed to flow all at the same time, celebrating the fact that nearly 7,000 people finally have clean water.

"It was Ben, it was all Ben, and we just followed his lead. Because, he's a great leader; he was a great leader in the Army, and in his personal life, we were happy to go along with him," said Herrle.

"Ben's legacy is that we can all take action in very calm, small steps. But you don't realize the far reaching affects of them," said Captain Sklaver's friend Elizabeth Peterson.

Connecticut's flags have flown at half-staff 44 times since the war on terror began.

Each time, there's been a story, an inspirational footnote, serving as an enduring legacy to the fallen. This patriot's tale centers on the thousands of lives impacted; the thousands of lives changed; the thousands of lives who are still living thanks to the passionate soul of Captain Sklaver.

"Ben was kind of like the glue that allowed us to become so close. We were united by him I think," Peterson said.

"He didn't see the roadblocks. He always saw the end goal and that's a beautiful way to live; that's a beautiful way to lead other people and that was his power," said Herrle.

For more information on the ClearWater Initiative, click here.