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April 19, 2004
Last letters home
Marines are writing letters home. Not to their own parents, wives, sweethearts, but to families of fallen brother Marines.
"Your husband/son/brother was an excellent Marine, admired by his peers, respected by his superiors, and he died doing his duty," many of the letters will say, or versions thereof.Among the fallen Marines is Lance Cpl. Robert Zurheide, 20, of Tucson, whose wife will soon give birth to their first child. His buddies want to make sure that someday Zurheide's child will know of his sense of humor, strength of character and bravery.
No law requires these letters to be written, only custom. In the Marine Corps, custom is a potent call.
When my son was in Iraq last year, two men in his battalion died of non-combat injuries. Their families received letters, not only from officers but from the enlisted men who lived side-by-side with their sons and husbands.
Letters from officers are being collected here at the Marine encampment on the city's outskirts. They are being typed and corrected for spelling.But enlisted Marines, some hunkered down in bullet-riddled homes awaiting orders to begin an assault, also are encouraged to write down their memories. Some use scraps of paper, others the sides of cardboard boxes that carry Meals Ready to Eat.
Troops remembered Zurheide's sense of humor, his love of singing and playing guitar, his occasional displays of dancing and his joy at showing the ultrasound picture of his unborn child.
"We want his child to know his dad was a good Marine. He never balked, he always volunteered, he went out of his way to help others," said 2nd Lt. Ben Wagner, commanding officer of Zurheide's platoon.
Last year, my son called me each time there was a Marine casualty to let me know he was all right. Even so, my breath stopped everytime there was a knock at my door. And the same thing will happen later this year when my son returns to Iraq. It happened to a friend earlier this week when news of the battle on the Syrian border came across news wires. We collectively held our breath until we knew her son was safe. And we mourn for the fallen, knowing that they died heroes. Each Marine is like one of our own sons. And the Marines feel the same way about the families of their fallen brothers.
"I hope what I wrote will at least let them know their sons didn't die in vain," (Capt. Zambiec) said. "They died trying to bring peace to a violent and chaotic part of the world."The letter-writing process helps the surviving Marines as well. They take comfort in the thought that the missives are helping a dead friend's family.
"That's how Marines grieve," said 1st Sgt. James Madden, who has been in the Corps for 22 years. "We take care of our own."
Posted by Deb at April 19, 2004 01:39 PM
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