Its is starting to hit close to home. This guy lived less than a half hour away.
When Geoffrey Morris decided to go into the military, he looked at the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.
But they weren't for him. "I want to be a Marine," he told his father.
It was a good fit.
"What set him apart from other kids was he was always meticulous," his dad Kirk said. "He would get mad at the other kids for leaving the dishes at the table or not wrapping up the Nintendo the right way, and the Marines is a meticulous organization."
Morris, 19, was killed in action Sunday in the tense Iraqi province of Anbar. Morris did not have details about the death of his son, a machine gunner assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Expeditionary Force. All the military had told him, he said, was that his son was in a Humvee that was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. Anbar, where the city of Fallujah is located, has been the site of intense violence recently, including last week when four American civilians were killed and their bodies mutilated by mobs.
''As I understand it, he was protecting his comrades, doing his duty,'' Morris said. He said three other troops also in the Humvee were not injured. Officials have not released details about Geoffrey Morris' death.
Morris said his son firmly believed in his mission. ''It meant a lot to him to be a defender of his country, but also the defender of the right of the Iraqi people to choose their government and how they want to live,'' he said.
When the two last talked about a week ago, the younger Morris once again told his father about his duty. ''He said, 'As soon as they stop killing each other, stop killing us, we're out of here. But we're not leaving until the job is done.'
''He did not want to die but he said many times and in letters . . . 'If I do die, Dad, I want you to know that I am right with God and everything will be OK.' ''
Geoffrey had joined the Marines last June, right after graduating from Warren Township High School, where he had played football for three years.
In October, he returned to his old school with a Marine recruiter to tell students how happy he was with his choice.
"The Marines fit him to a T," said his stepmother, Vickie Morris. "He didn't know quite what to do with his life and it really worked for him. They did a really good job of helping him become a man. He was an unlucky one in a very dangerous job."
Geoffrey had talked to some of his five brothers and sisters over the telephone just last Wednesday. "They laughed a lot on the phone, they were so grateful to hear that he was safe," Vickie Morris said. "So it came as quite a shock when the three Marines came to our door."
The doorbell rang at 12:30 a.m. Monday, seven hours after Geoffrey had been reported killed.
"He had a respect for duty," his father said. "What he believed was right, he did. And he didn't quit until it was done to his standards."
Contributing: AP
RIP.
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-iraqdead06.html
When Geoffrey Morris decided to go into the military, he looked at the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.
But they weren't for him. "I want to be a Marine," he told his father.
It was a good fit.
"What set him apart from other kids was he was always meticulous," his dad Kirk said. "He would get mad at the other kids for leaving the dishes at the table or not wrapping up the Nintendo the right way, and the Marines is a meticulous organization."
Morris, 19, was killed in action Sunday in the tense Iraqi province of Anbar. Morris did not have details about the death of his son, a machine gunner assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Expeditionary Force. All the military had told him, he said, was that his son was in a Humvee that was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. Anbar, where the city of Fallujah is located, has been the site of intense violence recently, including last week when four American civilians were killed and their bodies mutilated by mobs.
''As I understand it, he was protecting his comrades, doing his duty,'' Morris said. He said three other troops also in the Humvee were not injured. Officials have not released details about Geoffrey Morris' death.
Morris said his son firmly believed in his mission. ''It meant a lot to him to be a defender of his country, but also the defender of the right of the Iraqi people to choose their government and how they want to live,'' he said.
When the two last talked about a week ago, the younger Morris once again told his father about his duty. ''He said, 'As soon as they stop killing each other, stop killing us, we're out of here. But we're not leaving until the job is done.'
''He did not want to die but he said many times and in letters . . . 'If I do die, Dad, I want you to know that I am right with God and everything will be OK.' ''
Geoffrey had joined the Marines last June, right after graduating from Warren Township High School, where he had played football for three years.
In October, he returned to his old school with a Marine recruiter to tell students how happy he was with his choice.
"The Marines fit him to a T," said his stepmother, Vickie Morris. "He didn't know quite what to do with his life and it really worked for him. They did a really good job of helping him become a man. He was an unlucky one in a very dangerous job."
Geoffrey had talked to some of his five brothers and sisters over the telephone just last Wednesday. "They laughed a lot on the phone, they were so grateful to hear that he was safe," Vickie Morris said. "So it came as quite a shock when the three Marines came to our door."
The doorbell rang at 12:30 a.m. Monday, seven hours after Geoffrey had been reported killed.
"He had a respect for duty," his father said. "What he believed was right, he did. And he didn't quit until it was done to his standards."
Contributing: AP
RIP.
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-iraqdead06.html