thedrifter
02-01-08, 05:04 AM
February 1, 2008
Marine said little about the Iraq war
You had to be there to understand, said man from Greenwood area found dead in barracks
By Jason Thomas
jason.thomas@indystar.com
February 1, 2008
On leave during the Christmas holiday, Johnathon Goffred treated his family to dinner at Texas Roadhouse.
It was the one time the 22-year-old Marine from the Greenwood area mentioned anything about his seven-month tour in Iraq's Anbar province.
"He made it very clear he did not want to discuss the war," said his grandmother, MaryAnn Sparrow, who had raised Goffred since he was 2 days old. "He said nobody knows what it's like until you've been there."
More than a month later, those words haunt Sparrow and her husband, Walter. Goffred was found dead Saturday in his barracks at Camp Pendleton near San Diego.
His death remains under investigation, leaving MaryAnn Sparrow leaning on her Christian faith and trusting the military to find answers.
"My faith keeps me going," Sparrow said from her Johnson County home just south of Center Grove High School, where Goffred graduated in 2003. "I think (the military's) goal is to be accurate."
Sparrow last talked to Goffred Jan. 24 -- two days before he was found dead.
He told her about a recent snowboarding trip, where he had fallen a few times. She urged him to try skiing. He voiced his reluctance.
"I said, 'Look, John, anybody that can rappel out of a Blackhawk helicopter can get on two skis. Now get your butt back up there and get on those skis,' " Sparrow said. "He laughed and said, 'All right, I'll try it.'
"Everything was so positive."
Lance Cpl. Goffred, who joined the Marines in June 2005, was a rifleman in the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
The Navy Criminal Investigative Service is handling the investigation, according to Sgt. Trent Lowry, spokesman for the regiment. Investigators are releasing no details surrounding Goffred's death, but more information likely will be available in about 10 days, Lowry said.
Goffred's unit performed peacekeeping duties in Anbar, regarded as Iraq's most violent province. His missions included training Iraqi police and self-defense forces, as well as working regular patrols.
The Marines were a way for Goffred, whom Sparrow described as outgoing and "definitely a clown," to prepare for his goal of becoming a State Police trooper.
Goffred had two other goals: Buy MaryAnn and Walter a bigger house and open a foundation for needy children, something the Sparrows are familiar with, after having adopted 13 children.
He told MaryAnn Sparrow he would name it The Sparrows Nest.
"Which is such an honor," she said. "I cried like a baby."
Sparrow gave her grandson a rosary to safeguard him in Iraq. Goffred told her he wore it every day of his deployment.
"When I talked to him Thursday, I asked him, 'Where is your rosary?' " Sparrow said. "He laughed and said, 'It's on my nightstand by my head every night before I go to sleep.' "
Ellie
Marine said little about the Iraq war
You had to be there to understand, said man from Greenwood area found dead in barracks
By Jason Thomas
jason.thomas@indystar.com
February 1, 2008
On leave during the Christmas holiday, Johnathon Goffred treated his family to dinner at Texas Roadhouse.
It was the one time the 22-year-old Marine from the Greenwood area mentioned anything about his seven-month tour in Iraq's Anbar province.
"He made it very clear he did not want to discuss the war," said his grandmother, MaryAnn Sparrow, who had raised Goffred since he was 2 days old. "He said nobody knows what it's like until you've been there."
More than a month later, those words haunt Sparrow and her husband, Walter. Goffred was found dead Saturday in his barracks at Camp Pendleton near San Diego.
His death remains under investigation, leaving MaryAnn Sparrow leaning on her Christian faith and trusting the military to find answers.
"My faith keeps me going," Sparrow said from her Johnson County home just south of Center Grove High School, where Goffred graduated in 2003. "I think (the military's) goal is to be accurate."
Sparrow last talked to Goffred Jan. 24 -- two days before he was found dead.
He told her about a recent snowboarding trip, where he had fallen a few times. She urged him to try skiing. He voiced his reluctance.
"I said, 'Look, John, anybody that can rappel out of a Blackhawk helicopter can get on two skis. Now get your butt back up there and get on those skis,' " Sparrow said. "He laughed and said, 'All right, I'll try it.'
"Everything was so positive."
Lance Cpl. Goffred, who joined the Marines in June 2005, was a rifleman in the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
The Navy Criminal Investigative Service is handling the investigation, according to Sgt. Trent Lowry, spokesman for the regiment. Investigators are releasing no details surrounding Goffred's death, but more information likely will be available in about 10 days, Lowry said.
Goffred's unit performed peacekeeping duties in Anbar, regarded as Iraq's most violent province. His missions included training Iraqi police and self-defense forces, as well as working regular patrols.
The Marines were a way for Goffred, whom Sparrow described as outgoing and "definitely a clown," to prepare for his goal of becoming a State Police trooper.
Goffred had two other goals: Buy MaryAnn and Walter a bigger house and open a foundation for needy children, something the Sparrows are familiar with, after having adopted 13 children.
He told MaryAnn Sparrow he would name it The Sparrows Nest.
"Which is such an honor," she said. "I cried like a baby."
Sparrow gave her grandson a rosary to safeguard him in Iraq. Goffred told her he wore it every day of his deployment.
"When I talked to him Thursday, I asked him, 'Where is your rosary?' " Sparrow said. "He laughed and said, 'It's on my nightstand by my head every night before I go to sleep.' "
Ellie