thedrifter
07-19-07, 10:24 AM
Thursday, July 19, 2007 - 12:00 AM
Arlington Marine dies in Iraq
By Christopher Schwarzen
Times Snohomish County Bureau
Live life to the fullest and don't look back.
That was Arlington resident Shawn Starkovich's motto. Monday, the lance corporal died, at the age of 20, while serving with the U.S. Marines in Iraq.
Starkovich died in Al Anbar province while supporting combat operations there. According to the Marines, his death is under investigation.
Starkovich couldn't wait until age 18 to sign with his beloved Marines, and when he graduated from Arlington High School in 2005, his parents finally relented, signing papers so the young man could start his military career.
The Marine became a field wireman assigned to the Battalion Landing Team 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and deployed to Iraq in May.
Family members say he was a sharpshooter and an excellent Humvee driver, leading others in every task he was given. His awards included the Global War on Terrorism Medal, National Defense Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal and the Selected Marine Corps Reserve Medal.
"It was his decision to go in and become a man," said his father, Jim Starkovich. "I was very proud of him for making that decision."
Shawn Starkovich devoted his senior project in high school to researching the various military branches, with the desire to join the best one, his family said. It was the Marines' reputation for "taking care of their own" that eventually led him to join.
Said grandmother Kay Starkovich, "I tried to talk him out of it, tried to get him to join the U.S. Coast Guard like his uncle, but that's not what he wanted."
She remembers her only grandson as a gentle boy whose last e-mail to her about a month ago spoke of an upbeat mood and joy at having just received a package with powdered drink mixes and racing magazines.
"I've read and reread that e-mail since Monday," she said.
The "gentle boy" also had a bit of a rough side to him, Jim Starkovich said, and that led to a love of racing motorcycles and go-carts, something the two shared.
"We were racers, and the things that we did together were that kind of thing," he said.
As Jim Starkovich prepared for work at Boeing on Wednesday, he said he knew his son was a "smart kid who was always able to keep himself out of trouble."
But now, as he waits for news on the impending military investigation into his son's death, he wonders what story lies behind the fatality.
"We knew he would be in times of danger," he said. "But I just can't figure what happened over there."
Besides his father and grandmother, Shawn Starkovich is survived by his mother, Kelly; an older sister, Jamie; and other family members. Services have not yet been scheduled.
Christopher Schwarzen: 425-783-0577 or cschwarzen@seattletimes.com
Ellie
Arlington Marine dies in Iraq
By Christopher Schwarzen
Times Snohomish County Bureau
Live life to the fullest and don't look back.
That was Arlington resident Shawn Starkovich's motto. Monday, the lance corporal died, at the age of 20, while serving with the U.S. Marines in Iraq.
Starkovich died in Al Anbar province while supporting combat operations there. According to the Marines, his death is under investigation.
Starkovich couldn't wait until age 18 to sign with his beloved Marines, and when he graduated from Arlington High School in 2005, his parents finally relented, signing papers so the young man could start his military career.
The Marine became a field wireman assigned to the Battalion Landing Team 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and deployed to Iraq in May.
Family members say he was a sharpshooter and an excellent Humvee driver, leading others in every task he was given. His awards included the Global War on Terrorism Medal, National Defense Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal and the Selected Marine Corps Reserve Medal.
"It was his decision to go in and become a man," said his father, Jim Starkovich. "I was very proud of him for making that decision."
Shawn Starkovich devoted his senior project in high school to researching the various military branches, with the desire to join the best one, his family said. It was the Marines' reputation for "taking care of their own" that eventually led him to join.
Said grandmother Kay Starkovich, "I tried to talk him out of it, tried to get him to join the U.S. Coast Guard like his uncle, but that's not what he wanted."
She remembers her only grandson as a gentle boy whose last e-mail to her about a month ago spoke of an upbeat mood and joy at having just received a package with powdered drink mixes and racing magazines.
"I've read and reread that e-mail since Monday," she said.
The "gentle boy" also had a bit of a rough side to him, Jim Starkovich said, and that led to a love of racing motorcycles and go-carts, something the two shared.
"We were racers, and the things that we did together were that kind of thing," he said.
As Jim Starkovich prepared for work at Boeing on Wednesday, he said he knew his son was a "smart kid who was always able to keep himself out of trouble."
But now, as he waits for news on the impending military investigation into his son's death, he wonders what story lies behind the fatality.
"We knew he would be in times of danger," he said. "But I just can't figure what happened over there."
Besides his father and grandmother, Shawn Starkovich is survived by his mother, Kelly; an older sister, Jamie; and other family members. Services have not yet been scheduled.
Christopher Schwarzen: 425-783-0577 or cschwarzen@seattletimes.com
Ellie