Family recalls local airman who died in tragic fall

SHAWNEE, Kan. - Family and friends are remembering a Shawnee, Kan., native who died recently in a tragic accident in Texas.

Peter Clevinger, 25, died last weekend after he fell 10 stories from a parking garage in downtown San Antonio. He was an Airman 1st Class stationed at Lackland Air Force Base, and he had gone out that night with a group of fellow airmen. 

Peter’s older brother, Aaron Clevinger, told San Antonio NBC affiliate WOAI-TV Friday that he had spoken to his brother’s comrades, who said they were taking in the city view from atop the parking garage when they believe Peter Clevinger lost his footing and fell.

Prior to joining the Air Force, the Shawnee native played soccer at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kan. Before that, Peter graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Overland Park, Kan., where he was a key member of the soccer team, helping the squad to three state-championship titles.

Peter Clevinger's father, Ralph Clevinger, said Peter was the youngest of four siblings. The entire family is doing what it can to get through this difficult time, he said.

"I think that's what families do,” Ralph Clevinger said Saturday. “They rally around one another; make sure they check on one another and that they're doing alright. It's just an extraordinarily difficult thing to deal with."

Authorities in Texas are still investigating Peter Clevinger's death. But Peter’s father says his son was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.