53 Pairs of Boots

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MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 19, 2005) -- With family, friends and fellow service members in attendance, a memorial service was held at the base theater for the fallen Marines and sailor of 2d Marine Division who gave their lives in support of the War on Terrorism.

A total of 53 service members from the division were lost in Iraq and Afghanistan from April 9 to Dec. 31, 2004.

“We came together today to honor the 53 humble heroes,” said Navy Capt. Mark L. Tidd the 2d Marine Division chaplain.

“These were Marines you could trust to watch your back,” said Maj. Gen. Richard A. Huck, commanding general, 2d Marine Division. “They loved their country.”

With the lights low and the crowd quiet, the theater was somber with 53 monuments positioned on the stage for all to see. As the service progressed, the general made his speech followed by battalion commanders reading scriptures from the Bible.

Tidd was the last to speak before roll call for the fallen comrades. He spoke of what encompasses courage. First was strength, which Marines spend countless hours doing physical training to get prepared for combat, he said. They also do training to better prepare them for situations that arise in combat.

Tidd next spoke of leadership where every Marine is a leader in his own way. Not everyone is born with leadership qualities, but when they are in this line of work they are going to be leaders at one time or another, he said.

The last part of courage comes from the soul, Tidd added. People who have the first two and not believing in themselves don’t have courage. They can only have courage if all three pieces fit together.

Following Tidd’s remarks the names of the Marines and sailor were read off while all the participants stood in honor.

“We draw strength from those lost and then we move on. Not with our heads down, but with them held high because of those Marines and sailors dedication and courage,” Tidd said. “We owe it to them to do that.”

In Memory of:

LCpl Adam Brooks, 1st Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

LCpl Dustin Fitzgerald, 1st Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

LCpl Charles Hanson Jr., 1st Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

Sgt Edgar Lopez, 1st Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

LCpl Vincent Sullivan, 1st Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

Cpl Christopher Belchik, 2d Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

LCpl Nicholas Morrison, 2d Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

Sgt Michael Speer, 2d Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

LCpl Andrew Zabierek, 2d Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

GySgt Ronald Baum, attached to 2d Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

LCpl Bryan Kelly, attached to 2d Battalion, 2d Marine Regiment

PFC Daniel McClenney, 3d Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment

LCpl Juston Thacker, 3d Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment

LCpl Russell White, 3d Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment

Cpl Nathan Anderson, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

Cpl Kirk Bosselmann, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl Demarkus Brown, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl Travis Desiato, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl Bradley Faircloth, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl Dimitrios Gavriel, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

Cpl Todd Godwin, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl Michael Halal, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl Jeffery Holmes, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl David Houck, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

Cpl Romulo Jimenez II, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

Sgt Richard Lord, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

1stLt Dan Malcom Jr., 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

Cpl Gentian Marku, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl William Miller, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

LCpl Bradley Parker, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

Cpl Nicholas Ziolkowski, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

Sgt Lonny Wells, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment

2dLt Ryan Leduc, 2d Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment

Cpl Binh Le, 5th Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment

Cpl Matthew Wyatt, 5th Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment

HM3 David Cedergren, Headquarters Battalion

Sgt Christopher Heflin, Headquarters Battalion

LCpl Wesley Canning, 2d Assault Amphibian Battalion

LCpl Brian Schramm, 2d Assault Amphibian Battalion

SSgt Russell Slay, 2d Assault Amphibian Battalion

LCpl Timothy Creager, 2d Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

LCpl Scott Dougherty, 2d Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

LCpl Mark Engel, 2d Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

LCpl Justin Hunt, 2d Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

Cpl Jeffery Lawrence, 2d Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

Cpl Ronald Payne, 2d Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

Cpl Scott Vincent, 2d Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

PFC Rodricka Youmans, 2d Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion

LCpl Joshua Lucero, 2d Combat Engineer Battalion

LCpl Cesar Machadoolmos, 2d Combat Engineer Battalion

Cpl Joshua Wilfong, 2d Combat Engineer Battalion

Cpl Kevin Dempsey, 2d Reconnaissance Battalion

GySgt Javier Obleas, 2d Reconnaissance Battalion