On April 9th, Oregon City High School’s JROTC celebrated their students at their 2024 end of the year award ceremony. Among those awarded was senior Grace Autry, who was honored this year with the Tyrone S. Woods Leadership award, and a $1000 scholarship from OC’s own VFW Post #1324. This award goes to cadets who show a strong character both academically, and in their community. It was first gifted in 2021 to celebrate our community’s outstanding students, and to honor one of Oregon City’s veterans, Tyrone Snowden Woods, an OCHS alumni and former Navy SEAL. His courageous story is remembered by so many in Oregon City, and his strength and ideals continue to live on in the community. Woods’ honor will forever have a place at OCHS with those he left an impact on during his time here and while serving our country. His story is an inspirational one to tell.

Background

Woods graduated from OCHS in 1989, and was well known for his wrestling career and the awards he earned during his years in school. He was an athlete at heart, taking everything he learned with him into his future. Even after graduating and enlisting in the Navy at 18, Woods continued to use the lessons he had learned in his youth, an experience he would always keep with him. 

Growing up, Woods’ mother- Cheryl Bennett- said he was just like any other teenager, toeing the line as he explored the world, but that there was always a passion in what he did. When he began wrestling it taught him not only about strength, but about determination and grit. The lessons he learned while wrestling through the years helped him become the person he was. As he got older, Bennett said Woods grew as a person as well, stating, “This teenager that was so hard to keep on the tracks… was such a kind hearted and giving person.” 

Woods is remembered by even those who didn’t get to meet him in his time here in OC, and they continue to carry on his honor too. With the annual Tyrone Woods Invitational hosted by the TSW Wrestling Foundation, and the Tyrone Woods Leadership award for OCHS’ JROTC program, the passion and character that pushed him through life is celebrated in others as well.

Wrestling

Woods spent most of his school career wrestling, finding his way to the sport in elementary school, where his passion became evident. Continuing to wrestle through high school, it taught him a lot about courage, strength, and loyalty, as well as influencing him to stay strong academically. These were lessons Woods took with him into his career after school, something that he lived by and that those who knew him continue to pass on. 

During his time wrestling, Woods won many awards and achievements, placing third in the Three Rivers District League as a junior in 1988, and fifth in the OSAA State Championship his senior year, and second in districts. In his senior year alone, Woods set two school escape records for career escapes and seasonal escapes, had 37 takedowns, and 50 reversals. Woods, along with other wrestler Larry Oliver, received and shared the “Most Inspirational Wrestler” award.

While in the Navy, Woods continued to live by what he learned as a student athlete, and came back to Oregon City High School in 2009 to speak to a class taught by his former wrestling coach, Roger Rolen. While most students were excited to learn about the Navy from a SEAL himself, Woods was not there to talk about his time serving. Instead he said, “What I am going to talk to you about is how Oregon City High School and being a part of the wrestling team influenced me to become the man I am today.”

Service

Woods spent twenty years as a Navy SEAL, leading many decorated tours, serving on SEAL teams 1, 3, and 5, and was also on the Navy’s Leap Frog team for two of his years there. Throughout his service, Woods was applauded for his bravery, dedication, and extraordinary leadership, which earned him the rank of Senior Chief Petty Officer. As well as being a courageous officer, Woods was a certified nurse and paramedic, and was referred to by fellow officers as someone with “the hands of a healer and the arms of a warrior”. In 2005 he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal during Operation Iraqi Freedom. 

In 2010, Woods retired from the Navy and joined the CIA as a contract protective officer, serving his country and protecting American diplomats as a security detail. In 2012, he was chosen as a part of the CIA team sent to respond to the attack on the State Department’s facility in Benghazi, Libya. It was on this job that along with his team, Woods helped save thirty American lives while under fire, putting his life on the line to finish his mission no matter the cost. On September 12 of that year, Woods and his fellow officer, Glen Doherty, were felled by mortar fire while bravely protecting the CIA base and citizens inside. He was 41 years old.

The Tyrone Snowden Woods Wrestling Foundation

The TSW Wrestling Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to the memory of Woods and the sport he was forever passionate about. It was formed in 2015 following his death by his mother when she had a chance meeting with his high school coach, Roger Rolen. To this day, it runs in his honor, passing on his love for wrestling to teenage athletes like he once was. 

The Woods Snowden Woods Foundation’s goal is to spread his legacy, with his message of “be passionate about something”. They provide youth wrestlers and programs with financial support, and promote character development and scholarships to the young students they work with. TSWWF is a fully volunteer organization, working purely to support these athletes in their passion. From their founding in 2015 to this day, they have given over $100,000 to young wrestlers and teams and helped students all over the country with scholarships. 

At the Invitational Tournament last November, TSWWF hosted teams coming from all across Oregon, ranging from North Medford to Lebanon and even from Union, Washington. It was a huge success, and the foundation is so happy to continue spreading Woods’ memory and story to others, and to see all of the love and support from the community. “I want to give this community my gratitude… if it weren’t for them our journey would have been much harder,” Bennett said. Without the support they’ve received through the years, the foundation would not have been able to make as many dreams come true as they have.

Medal of Honor

Ten years after Woods’ death, the U.S. Senate successfully voted to honor Woods and the other three Americans – Glen Doherty, Sean Smith, and Ambassador Christopher Stevens – who died that day in Benghazi, with one of the most prestigious awards given by Congress, the Congressional Gold Medal. This award has been given only 179 times in the history of the U.S., and it took eight years and four attempts before finally being passed through Congress and Senate. “I am proud to join my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to properly honor these heroes, their service and their sacrifice,” said Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley. The bill has now been passed to the president’s desk and an award ceremony is expected to be held sometime this year.

Memory 

Woods’ name is also honored in Oregon City, with the Fallen Hero Memorial Highway by Milepost 2 on Oregon Route 213. It was voted in 2013 by the Oregon Legislature to become a memorial, and was erected soon later in 2014. The sign has been well maintained to this day, with flowers and American Flags often residing in the ground surrounding the sign, and on days like Veterans Day, the ground is hidden by the respects paid by the community that still feels his impact to this day. 

You can also see Woods’ memory on High School Avenue, at the Woods S. Woods Memorial Park. Announced in 2018 to be in the works, it is a 9.1 acre area with an open lawn, playground, shelter, walking path, and off-leash dog park. While in the planning stage, over 400 names were suggested by the community, but in the end the decision was made to name the park after one of Oregon City’s own fallen heroes. The park was officially opened in 2021.

Woods’ story has continued to inspire so many in this community and impact even more across the country. His strength and passion has left a lasting effect on those he met in his life, and even on those who only know of his many acts of courage. Woods’ story is one that continues to inspire adults and youth alike for many years to come, spread by loving words from family, friends, and acquaintances alike. His name will forever be in the hearts of OC, a son, a father, a friend, a student, a strong and selfless person who inspires others to be their best selves everyday.