Colonel Tristan Strahan Higgins, U.S. Army

Colonel Tristan S. Higgins, 49, of Colorado Springs, Colorado passed away March 11, 2021 while serving his country in Bucharest, Romania.He was born May 20, 1971 to Michael James Higgins and Cheleen Ann Catherine Mahar in Oaxaca, Mexico.Tristan went to high school at Awapatu College in Palmerston North, New Zealand and graduated in 1989. He went on to earn a degree in Political Science from University of Northern Colorado. Tristan was then commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army from Colorado State University in May of 1994. He would continue his education and held two Masters degrees from the School of Advanced Military Science (SAMS) and the American Military University (AMU).Tristan's initial training as an Air Defense Artillery officer was at Fort Bliss, Texas. In 1995 he departed for his first assignment in the Republic of Korea, where his duties were as a platoon leader in Battery D, 5th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery, 2nd Infantry Division. After returning from a one-year tour in Korea, in September 1996 Tristan married the love of his life, Tabatha. The couple's first duty station together was at Fort Riley, Kansas. Tristan served as a platoon leader, executive officer, and commander of Battery C, 1st Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery, 1st Armored Division. In 1998, Tristan and Tabatha moved to Fort Knox, Kentucky for his advanced officer's training course.Now a Captain, Tristan's next assignment was in Grafenwoehr, Germany on the staff of the 7th Army Training Command. In December 1999, following the birth of Tristan and Tabatha's first daughter, Alianna, Tristan served as a member of the 5th Battalion, 7th Air Defense Artillery, 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade in Hanau, Germany. In the summer of 2001, the family moved to Fort Hood, Texas. Tristan was first an assistant operations officer on the battalion staff, and in 2002 he assumed command of Battery B, 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery, 1st Cavalry Division. In March 2003, Tristan and Tabatha welcomed the birth of their second daughter, Arwyn, and Tristan successfully completed command several months later.Tristan next moved the family to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas where he assumed duties as an observer-trainer at the Battle Command Training Program. In this role he directly supported the training of leaders and units preparing to deploy to combat in Iraq or Afghanistan. After promotion to Major, the army selected Tristan for attendance at Fort Leavenworth's Command and General Staff College. He subsequently applied for and earned entry into the highly competitive Advanced Military Studies Program (AMSP), a graduate-level education program of the School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS).His tour at Fort Leavenworth ended in 2007 with Tristan assigned to Fort Shafter, Oahu, Hawaii. In 2007, Tristan also made a significant career change, leaving the Air Defense Artillery Branch and becoming an Army Strategist. In Hawaii, Tristan served as a strategist responsible for creating or revising war plans at the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command and at the Headquarters, U.S. Army Pacific Command. In 2009, Tristan received orders to deploy to the Multi-National Force-Iraq, the senior U.S. command in Baghdad, Iraq. Prior to taking this assignment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, he moved his family to Colorado Springs.In 2010, Tristan's twelve-month Iraq tour would end and he returned to Colorado Springs. As a Lieutenant Colonel, he served twice at Space and Missile Defense Command and once at U.S. Northern Command. Tristan attained the rank of Colonel in 2017 and that year became the first ever Deputy Chief of Staff, G5 Plans, of Space and Missile Defense Command. Over the course of his eight years in Colorado Springs, Tristan's substantial contributions to the nation's defense resulted in vastly improved strategies and contingency plans. In 2018 Tristan deployed for six months to Operation Resolute Support in Kabul, Afghanistan. The following year, despite only having just returned home to his family, Tristan deployed once again. This time for a two-year assignment in Bucharest, Romania. He served as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations for Headquarters Multinational Division South-East until his untimely passing.He is preceded in death by his father, Michael James Higgins; his paternal grandparents, Frank and Beatrice Higgins; and his maternal grandparents, Joseph and Pauline Mahar.Tristan is survived by his wife, Tabatha Gay Higgins of Colorado Springs, Colorado; his daughters, Alianna Maelyn Higgins and Arwyn Mikylie Higgins both of Colorado Springs, Colorado; his mother, Cheleen Mahar and stepfather, Christopher Wilkes; his sister, Siobhan Higgins and brother-in-law, Josh Nicotra; his father-in-law and mother-in-law, Wylie and Gaylene Brooks; his sister-in-law, Genia Beal and her husband, Layne Beal; and his nephews, Dylan Beal and Brooks Beal.For those who knew and served with Colonel Higgins, he is remembered for his integrity and duty to serve his nation. He was held in the highest regard and he was respected as a humble leader of many throughout the U.S. Army and NATO.For those who knew Tristan, he was the example of a loving husband and father. Tristan and Tabatha were married almost twenty-five years and had traversed the world together as an Army unit. He was most proud of, and dedicated to, his beautiful daughters. He was deeply loved and he will be missed beyond measure.A Celebration of Life will be held in July 2021 in Estes Park, Colorado, where we can gather outside in the mountains Tristan loved.