Briggs was 30 when he passed. He was a graduate of Riverhead High School and joined the U.S. National Guard in 2010. He was a special missions aviation’s flight engineer assigned to the 106th Rescue Wing, a unit dedicated to combat search and rescue. 

"This hall will now stand as a constant reminder that liberty is not free and that service above self is the highest goal,” Senior Vice Commander of the post Kenneth Arroyo said. 

Rebecca Briggs, his wife, said Briggs found tremendous meaning in his work. "He had a dangerous job,” she said, "but how can I ever ask someone to stop doing what he loved?”

He had previously served during Hurricane Harvey, a powerful category 4 hurricane that hit Texas and Louisiana in 2017, causing over 100 deaths. His wife remembers him telling her about saving a child during the disaster. 

"They volunteer to do that. They train to do that. It becomes a part of them —to want to save lives,” District 11 Commander William Hughes said.

Hughes said the unit had lost a total of 15 men to helicopter crashes. "15 men gone. 15 men gone,” Hughes said.” I was thinking about I —15 men gone —ut how many lives did they save? They saved thousands.” 

Congressman Nick LaLota (R-NY1) and Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine (R) were present for the ceremony. LaLota acknowledged that post-911 veterans are sometimes overlooked. "I have a great amount of pride in the post-911 federation of veterans who gave a lot to this county,” he said. "Technical Sergeant Briggs was one of those fine Americans who made that ultimate sacrifice.” 

Romaine said, "This is a great post and this renovation will only help make it greater and be a beacon for all veterans and remind people of the men and women who volunteer, who serve this country, sometimes as Sergeants Briggs, had to give their lives in service to this country.” 

His wife said, "Thank you for thinking of Dashan and honoring him today. We are coming up on eight years in March, and it’s just really nice that people don’t forget and keep honoring and keeping his name alive. It is great for the kids to see everyone that still cares about him.”  Their two children, Ava and Jayden, were aged 1 and 2, respectively, when Briggs passed. 

Quartermaster Danny Gavigan said the hall will be a "touch point” for the community. "A big focus for us is we want to not only [serve] veterans but the community at large.” 

"It is really a place befitting of Briggs Hall,” Arroyo said.