Lakewood Chamber President Mourns Loss of Son-Navy SEAL Killed in Afghanistan Attack

One of the 30 Navy SEALs killed in Afghanistan this weekend was 33-year-old Lt. Cmdr. Jonas Kelsall, the son of John Kelsall -- president and CEO of The Greater Lakewood Chamber of Commerce for the neighboring city of Lakewood.

Kelsall, a Shreveport, Lousiana native, and the other SEALs were killed Saturday when Taliban insurgents attacked their Chinook helicopter during a mission. Eight Afghans were also killed in the crash.

The Lakewood connection was first reported by the Long Beach Beachcomber newspaper on its website.

Jonas Kelsall received most of his training in San Diego and was one of the first members of SEAL Team 7, his father told the Shreveport Times newspaper. He attended the University of Texas out of Basic Underwater Demolition training, where he met his wife of three years, Victoria, according to the newspaper. 

John Kelsall has been president and CEO of the Lakewood Chamber since 2005 and is also a co-founder of the Los Angeles County Business Federation, known as BizFed, a group that works to give local companies ``a voice'' in policy matters.

An associate of John Kelsall told the Beachcomber he was always talking about "my son, the SEAL.''

City News Service contributed to this report.