Army Staff Sgt. Michael “Mike” Simpson was a contradiction. In contrast to the “quiet professional” reputation of the U.S. Army Green Berets, he was loud and proud.
“He loved his job,” said Krista Simpson Anderson, Simpson’s widow and founder of The Unquiet Professional, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports Gold Star families. “He was so excited to be a Green Beret.”
Simpson died on May 1, 2013, in Germany — where he was born — five days after sustaining wounds from an improvised explosive device while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. He was 30 years old at the time, and in addition to Krista, he is survived by the couple’s sons, Michael and Gabriel, who were toddlers at the time.
This year, he is being honored during two events over Memorial Day weekend. First, the PBS National Memorial Day Concert in Washington on Sunday, May 25, followed by the Project 33 Memorial Run in New York on Monday, May 26.
The annual National Memorial Day Concert is hosted by Joe Mantegna and Gary Sinise and “will feature a special tribute remembering our fallen heroes and Gold Star Families, who carry forever the heartache of having lost their loved ones,” according to a press release. Krista will be in attendance with her sons and husband, retired Master Sgt. Gus Anderson.
“We’re incredibly blessed that Mike is going to be honored this year at the National Memorial Day Concert on the West Lawn, the PBS Special,” Krista said. “I’m not really sure what that will look like — we haven’t seen it — but they came and interviewed our family. … It’s just going to be so special to have that documented forever.”
The event will feature several award-winning musicians and actors, capped off with a performance from the National Symphony Orchestra. The concert will air live on PBS at 8 p.m. Eastern.
The next morning, Krista and her family will fly to Buffalo, New York, for the Project 33 Memorial Run.
Project 33 is a not-for-profit founded by Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Michael Gomolka and his wife, Sam, to honor special operations soldiers killed during the Global War on Terror. Each year, they raise funds for an organization chosen by the family of the honoree.
Sam Gomolka and Krista first met through the Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year network, with Krista being named the overall winner in 2018 and Sam Gomolka the National Guard branch representative in 2019.
“We quickly became kindred spirits,” Sam Gomolka said. “When you meet Krista, you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, where have you been my whole life?’”
A personal connection with Project 33’s honorees isn’t unique, but this year does present a distinct change in how their honoree was selected. Previously, Project 33 has run for people with whom Michael Gomolka has served; Simpson will be the first that he didn’t know personally.
“Krista is such a voice within the community talking about Mike’s story, she was the first one that I thought about, you know, like bringing Mike to the forefront,” Sam Gomolka said. “It’s personal for me. I want to honor her and her family.”
Although Krista has been involved with the run virtually since it began eight years ago, this will be the first time she’s participating in person.
“It was so important for me to have us there because this will be the first time that the boys will witness a group of people gathering for their dad since his funeral, and they don’t remember that,” Krista said. “And for them, now they’re 13 and 15, and they’ll be in the run, doing it with these people that are honoring their father.”
Rather than a race, the P33 Memorial Run is paced by flag holders, with all of the runners following behind. The 6.8-mile route starts at Hamburg Beach and ends at Hamburg Brewery. Leading up to the run, volunteers hand out flyers along the route asking homeowners to step outside and wave flags as the runners pass by.
Sam Gomolka wants the Gold Star families to “see that the town of Hamburg remembers, honors and is just thankful for the sacrifice.”
“I cry the entire run, every year,” she added. “It’s so emotional.”
The support of the special operations military community — not just the brotherhood of the service members, but the sisterhood of the spouses as well — is something Sam Gomolka and Krista are both thankful for.
“They are just so incredibly passionate about honoring that bond and honoring our fallen through their organization,” Krista said of the Gomolkas. “The bonds and the community are just incredible.”
It’s been 12 years since Simpson’s death, a number that resonates with Krista and makes his being honored even more meaningful.
“There are 12 men on an ODA,” she said. “And so being year 12, you know, for us it’s just special. And just having Mike honored by a Special Forces family is even more special.”
This year, funds raised during the Memorial Run and other Project 33 fundraisers will support the GWOT Memorial Foundation.
