~* Cpl. Bum R. Lee *~
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SANTA CLARA - Saturday, June 5, 2004
Ryan Kim, Chronicle Staff Writer
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Cpl. Bumrok Lee called his parents often, always concerned that they be kept up to date on his life in the Marines. He called several times a month, even after he shipped out to Iraq on Presidents Day weekend. It was his way of showing his parents he loved them.
But Wednesday, his family in Santa Clara got a different call, one they had dreaded, one they hoped would never come. They were told that Lee, 21, had died from injuries he suffered last Saturday while on his way toward a raid in Al Anbar province.
"We're just trying to be strong and be there for each other through this hard and very horrible and traumatic event," said Lee's sister, Elis Lee, 23.
Lee's family spent Friday making funeral arrangements, trying to absorb the news of his death. They recalled a mild-mannered and patriotic man who considered it a privilege to join his country's military.
"He was extremely brave and proud of the fact that he could fight for his country," cousin Jin Whang said. "He wanted to do his civic and military duties for his country."
Lee immigrated with his family to the United States from South Korea in 1987, when he was 4 years old. He grew up in Sunnyvale and graduated in 2001 from Homestead High School, where he played water polo.
It was during high school that Lee enlisted in the Marines. He was based at Camp Pendleton in San Diego County and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force. Despite some misgivings about his military service, his family was always there by his side.
"They agreed with him because they wanted to support him, and they knew he wanted to do the honorable thing," Whang said.
Lee tried to make things easier on his parents by staying in close touch, even when he was in Iraq. Their only son, he remained dutiful to the end.
"He was very concerned about his family," Whang said. "He was a very nice kid, very humble and very dedicated and devoted to his family."
The family learned last Saturday that Lee had been seriously injured and was unconscious from an explosion that hit his vehicle. For days, the family held out hope, praying for him to recover. On Wednesday, they learned Lee had succumbed to his injuries.
"Someone called on Saturday, and basically the family had a huge lump in its throat," Whang said. "When they got the call (Wednesday), it was the most dreaded call they ever got."
A friendly, levelheaded and easygoing boy growing up, Lee had little trouble making friends. Many of them have streamed by the family's house as the news has spread.
"He was a funny and outgoing guy. Bum was the kind of guy everyone got along with," said childhood friend Zheng Chen of San Bruno, who enlisted in the Marines with Lee. "The command trusted him and his capabilities so much that Bum was put in a billet much higher than his rank during much of his service."
Lee was fresh out of high school when he left the Bay Area. Family members noted how he grew up fast in the Marines, getting bigger, stronger, more mature.
Lee's military commitment was to end in September, and Whang said he had plans to attend college locally. Even though the end of his commitment was fast approaching, Lee never begrudged his assignment in Iraq, even as his family grew more fearful for his safety.
"He knew that his time was going to be up soon, but he had no qualms about going where he was sent," Whang said.
~*Lance Cpl. Todd J. Bolding *~
By Bridie Isensee - The Facts, June 07, 2004
MANVEL — Family and friends are grieving the loss of Lance Cpl. Todd J. Bolding, a Marine from Manvel killed Thursday in Iraq.
“We’re just trying to cope right now,” said his mother, Luella Bolding, at the family’s home.
The family learned the 23-year-old Marine died Thursday as a result of wounds suffered from hostile action in Iraq’s Anbar Province. The family did not know any other details, said his sister, Joslyn Bolding, 27.
Bolding joined the Marines in May 2001, and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Marine Expeditionary Force in Camp Pendleton, Calif. He was deployed to Iraq in early March and had nine months left to serve, his sister said.
The youngest of three children, Bolding grew up in Manvel and graduated from Alvin High School in 2000. There, he excelled as an athlete, having competed in varsity football, baseball and track, his sister said. Her brother also nurtured his spiritual life with his involvement in church, Joslyn Bolding said.
But Joslyn Bolding will remember her brother the most for his devotion to his family.
“Through calling and always being there, whatever we needed, he was always there,” she said.
During her brother’s three years of service, Joslyn Bolding saw her brother develop a stronger sense of duty and accomplishment, she said.
Bolding planned to settle in the Houston area and attend college upon completing his military service. One of his career interests was in health professions, Bolding said.
Bolding is survived by his parents, Luella and James Bolding, his older brother, Keith, and sister Joslyn, all of Manvel. Funeral services will be Friday at Sugar Valley Baptist Church in Houston.
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In honor of Benjamin R Gonzalez, whom believed in what he fought for. He made us very proud, and we loved him very much. Our prayers go out to his family who is distraught, may God grant them comfort.
- One of many whom loved him - http://www.militarychapel.org - guestbook |
~* Lance Cpl. Benjamin R. Gonzalez *~
Funeral held for soldier slain in Iraq
By Robert Rogers
It was the shortest conversation they ever had.
The morning of May 28, Ana Martinez's phone rang. It was her fiance, Marine Lance Cpl. Benjamin R. Gonzalez, who called once a week during the four weeks he had been in Iraq.
He told her he loved her. He told her he missed her. He said his ribs and chest were badly bruised.
He told her he'd "always be hers.'
It was the last time they spoke.
Gonzalez, 23, was laid to rest Thursday at Riverside National Cemetery following services at Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier. He was killed May 29 in an explosion while providing security in the Al Anbar Province in Iraq.
It was his second tour of duty in Iraq. He was scheduled to return home in two months, friends said.
The procession for the El Monte resident attracted hundreds of mourners, including Marines from Gonzalez's former battalion regimen, El Monte city officials and members of law enforcement.
Services were performed in English and Spanish beneath the chapel's towering ceilings; mourners' muffled sobs and babies' cries intermittently crackled from the somber processions.
"This is a nightmare for us that we want to wake up from. We can't believe it still,' said Benjamin Gonzalez, the slain Marine's father. "We are proud of what he did. It was his dream to serve this country and he died doing it.'
The Rev. Sergio Alvarado of East Los Angeles Church of Christ, who gave an elegy in Spanish, said Gonzalez's death was a tragic loss in the fight for freedom.
"Hundreds, hundreds and hundreds of soldiers have died so we can live in free and secure communities,' Alvarado said. "We should salute them.'
Dozens of men at the funeral donned black bands on their left arms in memory of Gonzalez. The bands, which in scrawled white letters read, "In Loving Memory Lance Cpl. Benjamin Gonzalez Rest in Peace, Cobra-LSD,' were worn by members of a crew of young men Gonzalez socialized with in high school, said Mike Lorenzo, 25.
Also brandishing a black band was Samuel Sanchez, one of Gonzalez's nine younger siblings. Sanchez looked upon his older brother for guidance and as a role model; he plans to soon enlist in the Marines.
"He was just a great guy who liked to have fun and live life to the fullest,' Sanchez said. "I want to follow in his footsteps and serve my country, I just don't want to come back in a casket.'
Gonzalez, who planned to marry Martinez, 19, later this year, joined the Marines in October 2000. He trained at Camp Pendleton and spent the first three- and-a-half years serving in the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine.
"We were going to get married as soon as he got back,' she said.
After an eight-month tour in Iraq, during which he encountered heavy combat, Gonzalez came home to El Monte in September. In April, Gonzalez was deployed to Iraq again, this time with a different battalion. The 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine regiment needed fresh Marines to counter depleted numbers resulting from heavy casualties.
He volunteered for an early second deployment to get his last three months over, said Cpl. Buckleigh Brown, his roommate for six months while both were on duty in Japan.
"It was either May 2 or June 1,' Brown said. "He left earlier so he could get back to his life here in El Monte.'
After the burial, Rep. Hilda Solis, D-El Monte, honored his parents with a Congressional Record and a U.S. flag.
"We have to pay the same tribute no matter where the soldier comes from,' Solis said. "It doesn't matter their culture, they all fight for the United States of America.'
Gonzalez is the third soldier from El Monte to be killed in Iraq since 2003. Marine Cpl. Jorge Gonzalez, 20, was killed in combat on March 23, 2003. Army Pvt. 1st Class Jose Casanova, 23, died Oct. 13 of last year in a vehicle accident.
The city of El Monte has planted trees in city parks in their honor.
-- Gema Duarte contributed to this story. Robert Rogers can be reached at (626) 962-8811, Ext. 2110.
~* Pfc. Cody S. Calavan *~
LAKE STEVENS -- Pfc. Cody S. Calavan, 19, of Lake Stevens, Wash., died Saturday when is convoy hit a roadside bomb...
For the Calavan family, it's the second tragedy for the family in less than a year.
Nineteen-year-old Pfc. Cody Calavan joined the Marines right out of high school. Calavan was a machine gunner assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Camp Pendleton, Calif.
He had always wanted to be a Marine. He believed strongly in the Iraq war, just like his father.
"Will I miss my son greatly? (nods yes) Is it worth something? It's worth a great deal if we finish," said his father David Calavan.
Calavan graduated from Lake Stevens High School, but his family moved to Stanwood two years ago.
It's been really hard on our community to lose such a nice young man; a patriotic young man," said teacher Brent Barnes.
The loss for Cody's dad is unspeakable. His only other son, 15-year-old Joey, was killed in a drinking-and-driving accident nine months ago.
As sole-surviving son, Cody could have come home from the war. "But the direct answer was: ' I'm trained at what I do, these people are depending on me, so I'm going,' " said David Calavan.
David also lost his wife to breast cancer six years ago and has since remarried.
David and his wife Pamela, who says she loved being a stepmother to both boys, now say it's their faith that's keeping them going.
"We know they're safe now," Pamela Calavan said. "We've just got to get past feeling really lonely and figure out what to do next."
They still have two stepsons to raise together. They're planning a family memorial in Everett once Cody's body is returned to the United States.
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~* Lance Cpl. Rafael Reynosasuarez *~
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Associated Pres
RIVERSIDE, Calif. - When Marine Lance Cpl. Rafael Reynosa left for Iraq several months ago, he didn't know the gender of the baby his wife was carrying. "He wanted to have a baby girl and I just found today it's a little girl. He left without knowing what he was having, and that's ... really tough on me," his five-month pregnant wife, Dinora, told KABC-TV on Wednesday. Reynosa, 28, of Riverside, died Saturday of hostile fire in Al Anbar Province in Iraq, the U.S. Department of Defense said in a statement. Reynosa will be buried at Riverside National Cemetery. The Camp Pendleton Marine was a mortarman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force. Reynosa came from Mexico and lived in Santa Ana during his teens. He married Dinora, his high school sweetheart, and the couple moved into the first home they bought together in Riverside a few months ago. Owning a home was Reynosa's dream. "Once he got those keys, he's like, 'I'm already an American. I made my American dream,'" his wife said. Dinora Reynosa said she will tell her girl everything about her father, including that he "is always going to be a hero." Rafael Reynosa joined the Marines on April 23, 2001. He has received several awards, including the National Defense Service Medal.
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