thedrifter
05-09-06, 03:38 AM
Del. Marine injured in Iraq dies
Seaford 21-year-old was wounded in blast
By ANDRE L. TAYLOR
The News Journal
05/09/2006
Ralph Palmer knew his nephew, Marine Cpl. Cory L. Palmer, had been badly wounded in an explosion in Iraq on May 1, nine days before his 22nd birthday.
Still, he didn't expect the worst. "Every day after the accident, I hoped that everything would be all right," he said.
So when Cory's father, Charles, called him at 2:15 a.m. Sunday to say the young Seaford Marine had died from his wounds, Ralph Palmer's body went numb.
As the news spread Sunday and Monday, residents across Seaford and Delaware joined him in mourning.
All flags in the Sussex County community will fly at half-staff until after Palmer's funeral, officials announced Monday evening.
"Anyone who's willing to give their life for their country deserves this honor," said Seaford Mayor Edward H. Butler Jr.
Palmer, a member of the 2nd Recon Battalion, A Company 1st Platoon, was injured when the Humvee he was in was hit with an explosive near Fallujah about 9:20 p.m., Baghdad time, on May 1, according to his aunt, Montine Willin.
When Marine officials contacted the injured soldier's parents, Charles and Danna Palmer, on May 2, they said that the 21-year-old would be taken to a hospital in Germany. They were later told he would be taken to a hospital in San Antonio, and the Marines arranged their travel, said Ralph Palmer.
After the plane he was on left Germany, Palmer experienced complications from his injuries, Ralph Palmer said, which forced an emergency landing in Nova Scotia, Canada. As Charles and Danna Palmer anxiously waited in San Antonio for their son to land, they were given the news that he had died on the way.
"It was just his time to go, I guess," Ralph Palmer said.
Palmer is one of 2,415 soldiers killed in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003. Of those, 2,276 have been killed since President Bush announced the end of combat operations in April 2003.
Palmer was on his second tour of duty in Iraq, Ralph Palmer said, and had been there for five weeks when he was injured. His first tour lasted seven months. Ralph Palmer said his nephew never talked much about the war but was proud to be a Marine.
"He was always positive and wasn't hesitant to go to war either time," Ralph Palmer said. "He felt he was doing the right thing."
After Cory Palmer joined the Marines, Ralph Palmer said, his parents hung a Marine flag next to "Old Glory" at their house each day. He said his family is struggling to deal with the loss.
"He was a fun, loving guy," Willin said. "He was so full of energy."
A 2002 graduate of Seaford High School, Cory Palmer was on the varsity soccer team during his senior year. Before that, head coach Tim Lee said he had seen Cory Palmer around school and perceived him as an "ornery and mischievous guy."
"He was always up to something," Lee said. "As he got older, I noticed his maturity grew."
Lee said Cory Palmer was not the best player on the team as a senior, but competed hard and listened to instruction.
"He was the type of player that did what you told him to do," Lee said. "He was a proud member of the team, and I'm proud to say that I knew him."
Contact Andre L. Taylor at 324-2890 or andretaylor@delawareonline.com.
Ellie
Seaford 21-year-old was wounded in blast
By ANDRE L. TAYLOR
The News Journal
05/09/2006
Ralph Palmer knew his nephew, Marine Cpl. Cory L. Palmer, had been badly wounded in an explosion in Iraq on May 1, nine days before his 22nd birthday.
Still, he didn't expect the worst. "Every day after the accident, I hoped that everything would be all right," he said.
So when Cory's father, Charles, called him at 2:15 a.m. Sunday to say the young Seaford Marine had died from his wounds, Ralph Palmer's body went numb.
As the news spread Sunday and Monday, residents across Seaford and Delaware joined him in mourning.
All flags in the Sussex County community will fly at half-staff until after Palmer's funeral, officials announced Monday evening.
"Anyone who's willing to give their life for their country deserves this honor," said Seaford Mayor Edward H. Butler Jr.
Palmer, a member of the 2nd Recon Battalion, A Company 1st Platoon, was injured when the Humvee he was in was hit with an explosive near Fallujah about 9:20 p.m., Baghdad time, on May 1, according to his aunt, Montine Willin.
When Marine officials contacted the injured soldier's parents, Charles and Danna Palmer, on May 2, they said that the 21-year-old would be taken to a hospital in Germany. They were later told he would be taken to a hospital in San Antonio, and the Marines arranged their travel, said Ralph Palmer.
After the plane he was on left Germany, Palmer experienced complications from his injuries, Ralph Palmer said, which forced an emergency landing in Nova Scotia, Canada. As Charles and Danna Palmer anxiously waited in San Antonio for their son to land, they were given the news that he had died on the way.
"It was just his time to go, I guess," Ralph Palmer said.
Palmer is one of 2,415 soldiers killed in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003. Of those, 2,276 have been killed since President Bush announced the end of combat operations in April 2003.
Palmer was on his second tour of duty in Iraq, Ralph Palmer said, and had been there for five weeks when he was injured. His first tour lasted seven months. Ralph Palmer said his nephew never talked much about the war but was proud to be a Marine.
"He was always positive and wasn't hesitant to go to war either time," Ralph Palmer said. "He felt he was doing the right thing."
After Cory Palmer joined the Marines, Ralph Palmer said, his parents hung a Marine flag next to "Old Glory" at their house each day. He said his family is struggling to deal with the loss.
"He was a fun, loving guy," Willin said. "He was so full of energy."
A 2002 graduate of Seaford High School, Cory Palmer was on the varsity soccer team during his senior year. Before that, head coach Tim Lee said he had seen Cory Palmer around school and perceived him as an "ornery and mischievous guy."
"He was always up to something," Lee said. "As he got older, I noticed his maturity grew."
Lee said Cory Palmer was not the best player on the team as a senior, but competed hard and listened to instruction.
"He was the type of player that did what you told him to do," Lee said. "He was a proud member of the team, and I'm proud to say that I knew him."
Contact Andre L. Taylor at 324-2890 or andretaylor@delawareonline.com.
Ellie