thedrifter
10-04-07, 03:17 PM
October 4, 2007 - 01:31PM
Marine killed in Iraq remembered at memorial
Murkerson leaves behind a wife and three children
By Corey Friedman
Havelock News
A U.S. Marine killed in Iraq was awarded the Purple Heart during a Cherry Point memorial service Thursday morning.
Gunnery Sgt. Herman Jerome Murkerson Jr., 35, died Monday in the Al Anbar province of Iraq. He was a tactical motor transport operator assigned to Marine Headquarters Squadron 2 in Cherry Point’s 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.
The Purple Heart was awarded posthumously to Murkerson on behalf of Lt. Gen. James Mattis, commander of the U.S. Marine Forces Central Command. The military honor is given to service members who are wounded or killed by enemy forces.
Murkerson, of Adger, Ala., was lauded by his friends and fellow Marines as a man of integrity during the memorial service in the Cherry Point air station chapel.
“Gunny Murkerson was the real deal — an expert in his field, a leader with vision and a man with tremendous integrity,” said Lt. Col. Mary J. Choate. “He was the guy you would ask for by name for any challenge, the harder the better.”
Murkerson is survived by his wife, Windy; his children, Stephen, Daniel and Kristina; his parents; three brothers; and two sisters.
During her remarks, Choate addressed Murkerson’s widow as a fellow Marine wife.
“Uniform aside, Windy, I’d like to speak personally to you,” she said. “I am also a mother of three and the wife of a Marine who is deployed. You are walking a road none of us wants to walk. I am deeply sorry for your pain.”
Born March 1, 1972 in Adger, Ala., Murkerson joined the Marine Corps after graduating high school in 1990. He attended recruit training in Parris Island, S.C. and later served as a drill instructor there.
On his third deployment to Iraq, Murkerson was shot Monday while on patrol as a logistics adviser with an Iraqi army battalion.
During their remarks at the memorial, fellow Marines remembered Murkerson as a loving husband and father, an outdoorsman who loved hunting and riding all-terrain vehicles and a fan of NASCAR racing and University of Alabama football.
“Gunnery Sgt. Murkerson was a proud Marine,” said Lt. Col. William J. Conley Jr., the commanding officer of Murkerson’s unit. “He was a proud American from Alabama. He gave his life for freedom, for his family, our country and for our Corps.”
Ellie
Marine killed in Iraq remembered at memorial
Murkerson leaves behind a wife and three children
By Corey Friedman
Havelock News
A U.S. Marine killed in Iraq was awarded the Purple Heart during a Cherry Point memorial service Thursday morning.
Gunnery Sgt. Herman Jerome Murkerson Jr., 35, died Monday in the Al Anbar province of Iraq. He was a tactical motor transport operator assigned to Marine Headquarters Squadron 2 in Cherry Point’s 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.
The Purple Heart was awarded posthumously to Murkerson on behalf of Lt. Gen. James Mattis, commander of the U.S. Marine Forces Central Command. The military honor is given to service members who are wounded or killed by enemy forces.
Murkerson, of Adger, Ala., was lauded by his friends and fellow Marines as a man of integrity during the memorial service in the Cherry Point air station chapel.
“Gunny Murkerson was the real deal — an expert in his field, a leader with vision and a man with tremendous integrity,” said Lt. Col. Mary J. Choate. “He was the guy you would ask for by name for any challenge, the harder the better.”
Murkerson is survived by his wife, Windy; his children, Stephen, Daniel and Kristina; his parents; three brothers; and two sisters.
During her remarks, Choate addressed Murkerson’s widow as a fellow Marine wife.
“Uniform aside, Windy, I’d like to speak personally to you,” she said. “I am also a mother of three and the wife of a Marine who is deployed. You are walking a road none of us wants to walk. I am deeply sorry for your pain.”
Born March 1, 1972 in Adger, Ala., Murkerson joined the Marine Corps after graduating high school in 1990. He attended recruit training in Parris Island, S.C. and later served as a drill instructor there.
On his third deployment to Iraq, Murkerson was shot Monday while on patrol as a logistics adviser with an Iraqi army battalion.
During their remarks at the memorial, fellow Marines remembered Murkerson as a loving husband and father, an outdoorsman who loved hunting and riding all-terrain vehicles and a fan of NASCAR racing and University of Alabama football.
“Gunnery Sgt. Murkerson was a proud Marine,” said Lt. Col. William J. Conley Jr., the commanding officer of Murkerson’s unit. “He was a proud American from Alabama. He gave his life for freedom, for his family, our country and for our Corps.”
Ellie