CPL Thomas Jardas

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Former military and school friends of a Fort Myers man missing in a helicopter crash off Hawaii say the Cypress Lake High School grad was a great friend and an outstanding Marine.

Cpl. Thomas Jardas, 22, is among 12 men aboard two helicopters, each carrying six Marines, that went down off Oahu's north shore late Thursday, according to the U.S. Marine Corps.

A spokesman for the Jardas family in Lee County said Sunday they did not have a statement, but Jardas' sister, Haely Jardas, posted on her Facebook page: "My little brother was lost doing what he loved. He has always been and will always be my most important person."

Haely Jardas is the reigning Miss District of Columbia in the Miss America Organization. She wrote on Facebook: "My little brother was lost doing what he loved. He has always been and will always be my most important person."
Screenshot of Haely Jardas' Facebook post.

Screenshot of Haely Jardas' Facebook post. (Photo: Facebook)

A close friend and fellow Cypress Lake High School graduate, Ryan Mitnick, told The News-Press that Thomas Jardas was "an outstanding Marine" and a level-headed person.

"Tommy was the kind of guy everybody loved, You could not ask for a better best friend," he said.

Dennis Horn, a friend of Jardas from Cypress Lake, said the news of the crash hit him hard Saturday night. "I couldn't breathe."

Horn, in the Army and stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., said Jardas was "would walk into a room and everyone would get a smile," he said. "He always knew how to make you smile."