Douglas John Heston

Born in 1976, Doug cherished his upbringing in Mansfield, but knew he was ultimately destined for distant ventures. At a very young age, he decided he wanted to someday become a U.S. soldier. His father, a Navy veteran, encouraged Doug to join the Navy, or the Air Force, or the Coast Guard – anything but the Army. But the Army it was – Doug’s choice had been made, and he was unyielding.

Doug was a straight-A student in Madison Local Schools – but only when it came to Physical Education. Because he knew with laser focus what he planned to do with his life, everything else was peripheral. As rumor has it, a grade school teacher once banished Doug to a storage closet, desk and all, for incessantly distracting the class. Similar myths have been told about teachers lining the halls in eager anticipation to witness Doug getting his recurrent dose of corporal punishment. (In his adult years, after having to lead thousands of soldiers with comparable levels of hyperactivity and attention deficit, Doug developed a deep appreciation for his former teachers – and teachers in general – and tried to visit them whenever he could while home on military leave.)

Doug channeled his energy by playing nearly every sport that exists. His favorites were football and swimming. Although small in stature, he used his skill and spirit to convince his coach to let him play defensive tackle like he wanted to. Doug was competitive in every way, and when it came to making things happen for himself, he left no alternative. Doug had an equal passion for making others laugh and putting on a show – the world was his stage. After performing as Michael Jackson in Madison Comprehensive High School’s annual talent show, he was voted best male dancer of his graduating class.

When not bull-rush tackling people or doing the moonwalk, Doug could be found with his best friend Josh Davis, enacting creative deeds like picking flowers off bushes to lay on graves on Memorial Day, which earned the 10-year-olds an article in the Mansfield News Journal, as well as a TV appearance on Channel 5’s “The Morning Exchange” show in Cleveland.

Doug enlisted in the U.S. Army in the summer of 1996, and attended the Army’s One Station Unit Training for MOS 11B (Infantry) at Fort Benning, Georgia. His first assignment was to Schofield Barracks, Hawaii’s 1-14th Infantry Golden Dragons, which served as a light infantry/rapid-reaction component of the Tropic Lightning Division. When Doug wasn’t busy rising through the enlisted ranks at a rapid rate and attending every military training school he could, he indulged his love of swimming by doing backflip gainer jumps into the Pacific off the 30-foot-high volcanic rock at Waimea Bay on Oahu’s North Shore.

Doug met his true soulmate, Amber, in 1998, and in July 2000 they were married beside a waterfall at Waimea Valley in Haleiwa.

After reassignment to the 1st Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment at Fort Lewis, Washington as a sergeant, Doug participated in the reorganization and re-equipping of the brigade with Stryker armored vehicles, following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. In 2003, after re-enlisting in the Army once more, Doug was reassigned to the 74th Long Range Surveillance Detachment with the 173rd Airborne Brigade at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza, Italy. Doug was immediately sent downrange to Iraq to join the brigade there in support of the Global War on Terror, where he experienced an enemy ambush involving heavy gunfire and explosives on just his second day on the ground.

In between that combat deployment, and another one to follow for 12 months in Afghanistan, Doug and Amber enjoyed life in Italy, Europe, and each other as much as they possibly could. Doug had always lived as if tomorrow was not promised, and the hazards of his chosen profession inspired him further to not take a single moment for granted. He purchased a snowboard online and had it shipped to him in Afghanistan, so he could take advantage of the fresh mountain powder in between combat missions. Midway through that year-long deployment, Doug was promoted to sergeant first class and reassigned as a platoon sergeant to A Company, 1-508 – later reflagged as 1-503 – with the 173rd Airborne Brigade.

Doug was grateful to make it home once again from a very active combat deployment, and on the day he reenlisted in the Army indefinitely, Doug and Amber also learned they were going to become parents. After another relocation, this time to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Amber gave birth to Douglas (Ammy) Danger Joshua Heston, followed three years later by Rylan Blaze Heatherlyn Heston. For seven years, Doug served in 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment - Delta, taking part in multiple additional combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan – all in between potty training toddlers, building custom Halloween costumes, trips to Disney, and managing to travel with his family to all 50 U.S. states so they could experience and enjoy the greatness of this country together. A lifelong, diehard Steelers fan, Doug once returned from Afghanistan with an extra large Steelers tattoo emblazened upon his entire right calf. He explained one of his colleagues had ordered a tattoo kit downrange, and had developed his skill by giving all the guys tattoos. Doug continued to literally bleed black and gold for some time.

In 2014, Doug was assigned to 1-21 Infantry Battalion back at Schofield Barracks, and was thrilled not only to serve as a first sergeant in the same division he had served as a new private, but also for their kids to get to experience life in Hawaii. After just 18 months, Doug was selected to attend the United States Army Sergeants Major Academy at Fort Bliss, Texas, so the family packed up once more and moved from the middle of the Pacific Ocean to the Chihuahuan Desert. While a student at the academy, Doug also completed his bachelor’s degree in business management. He enjoyed being back in school just about as much as he did (or didn’t) as a kid, but still managed to graduate with honors – and somehow kept from being banished to any of the academy’s storage closets.

Doug next relocated to the Asymmetric Warfare Group at Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia. While there, he developed the very first Army-wide subterranean training program for 26 brigade combat teams, traveling the globe training up soldiers in subterranean operations, as well as briefing the U.S. Secretary of Defense and senior generals on the latest emerging threats.

Schofield Barracks in Hawaii called Doug back once more, as he was selected to serve as the command sergeant major – the Army’s highest enlisted rank – for the 1-27 Infantry Battalion Wolfhounds. One of Doug’s many memorable experiences in this role was getting to visit the Holy Family Home orphanage in Osaka, Japan with Peace Bridge, which facilitates the Wolfhound regiment’s special relationship with the orphanage that was established shortly after World War II. Doug enjoyed delivering Christmas gifts from the Wolfhounds to the children, and played so hard with the kids that one of his own shoes fell apart. Although much of his military career involved war, as the longest war in U.S. history did span the bulk of his 26 years in the Army, Doug especially valued every opportunity to facilitate peace. “This relationship sends a powerful message – it sends the message that while we are sending troops away to fight for what we believe in, what you can give back is [just as] important,” Doug had told Fox News in an interview following his visit to the orphanage in 2019 (https://www.foxnews.com/world/us-soldiers-father-christmas-japanese-orphans).

Doug retired from his Army career in the very place it began, at Schofield Barracks. July 28, 2022 was Doug’s official last day in the U.S. Army. After retirement, he immediately grew his hair long for the first time in his life, then cut and donated it to children with medical hair loss.

Doug’s post-Army retirement pursuits were just as active as his military endeavors. He became an IT expert, worked designing headstones, and even tried out being a plumber for a few days. He spent more time than ever on the steel and wood art that he has become known for over the past two decades, as his pieces adorn walls locally, in many states, and internationally. He was hired to conduct authorized physical penetration testing for a $30 billion dollar utility organization, and succeeded, concluding the mission with his feet kicked up on the desk of the company’s CEO. He had recently returned, as a contractor this time, from traveling the globe teaching military personnel, once again, skills in subterranean operations and land navigation. At the time of his sudden death, he was working as a personal security agent, and was driving an RV when he was hit head on by an erratic driver near Dolores, Colorado. Doug was killed on the four-year anniversary of his Army retirement, effectively settling the bet he had made with his best friend decades ago that he would die before reaching age 50.

The most significant facet of Doug is, on paper, the least unique, yet it is far and beyond the most important: he deeply loved his family and friends. Doug knew he would never get rich serving in the military. His true wealth came in the quantity and quality of people he knew and experiences he gained. He loved spending time with his immediate and extended family, which was the motivating factor in moving back to Ohio with his family after his Army retirement. He also spent as much time as he could afford traveling to see friends and family, and showing up wherever and whenever he possibly could.

Doug is survived by his spouse, Amber; his children, Ammy and Rylan; his parents, Doug and Brenda Heston; his sisters, Lynda Shire and Michelle (Curtice) Bings; his brother by heart, Josh (Becky) Davis; and his cherished nieces, nephews, godsons, extended family, and thousands of brothers and sisters in arms.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Donna Larkin.

The family will welcome friends from 5:00-7:00 pm on Friday, August 14, 2026, at Wappner Funeral Directors and Crematory-Ontario, 100 S. Lexington-Springmill Road. A memorial service will take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, August 15, 2026, at Madison Middle School, 1419 Grace St. in Mansfield, Ohio. In lieu of flowers, those who wish may make a memorial donation to Peace Bridge in honor of Doug Heston (please mail checks to: Peace Bridge Inc., 2223 Seaview Ave, Honolulu, HI 96822).

Words of condolence may be expressed at www.wappner.com