thedrifter
05-10-08, 08:07 AM
May 10, 2008
Marine to be laid to rest
By HOLBROOK MOHR
JACKSON - Marine Lance Cpl. Casey Casanova, thought to be the first woman from Mississippi killed in combat in Iraq, will be laid to rest today.
Casanova, a 22-year-old McComb native, is remembered by family and friends as a woman who loved to sing and dance and never met a stranger. She was one of four Marines who died in a roadside bomb attack May 2 in Iraq's Al Anbar province.
"Celebrate life because that's what they were doing," her mother, Paula Carruth, said Friday. "They were giving their lives so we could celebrate ours."
Visitation is scheduled for today at New Heights Baptist Church in Summit from 1 to 3 p.m. Burial will follow at Adams Methodist Church Cemetery.
Carruth said she didn't know it at the time, when Casanova enlisted two years ago, but she has since learned her daughter "was born to be a Marine."
"Freedom is not free. We need to keep supporting our troops," Carruth said. "Do not forget them. We can't quit them. They are not quitting us for one second."
Casanova attended Bass Memorial Academy in Lumberton before going to Southwest Mississippi Community College, where she played drums in the band and sang, said her grandmother, Kitty Carruth. She also sang with her church and was honored to sing the national anthem at a Marine ball in California.
"She loved to sing. She sang all the time. When she was 2 years old, she was singing on the toilet," her mother said. "That's what she loved to do. She did it well."
Paula Carruth said Marines from across the country plan to attend the funeral. That, she said, is what Marines do.
"My heart goes out to the Marines who were with my daughter and their families," Carruth said. "People told me that my daughter was very, very good friends with these young gentlemen and they took care of her."
Others killed in the attack were: Cpl. Miguel A. Guzman, 21, of Norwalk, Calif.; Lance Cpl. James F. Kimple, 21, of Carroll, Ohio; and Sgt. Glen E. Martinez, 31, of Boulder, Colo.
Ellie
Marine to be laid to rest
By HOLBROOK MOHR
JACKSON - Marine Lance Cpl. Casey Casanova, thought to be the first woman from Mississippi killed in combat in Iraq, will be laid to rest today.
Casanova, a 22-year-old McComb native, is remembered by family and friends as a woman who loved to sing and dance and never met a stranger. She was one of four Marines who died in a roadside bomb attack May 2 in Iraq's Al Anbar province.
"Celebrate life because that's what they were doing," her mother, Paula Carruth, said Friday. "They were giving their lives so we could celebrate ours."
Visitation is scheduled for today at New Heights Baptist Church in Summit from 1 to 3 p.m. Burial will follow at Adams Methodist Church Cemetery.
Carruth said she didn't know it at the time, when Casanova enlisted two years ago, but she has since learned her daughter "was born to be a Marine."
"Freedom is not free. We need to keep supporting our troops," Carruth said. "Do not forget them. We can't quit them. They are not quitting us for one second."
Casanova attended Bass Memorial Academy in Lumberton before going to Southwest Mississippi Community College, where she played drums in the band and sang, said her grandmother, Kitty Carruth. She also sang with her church and was honored to sing the national anthem at a Marine ball in California.
"She loved to sing. She sang all the time. When she was 2 years old, she was singing on the toilet," her mother said. "That's what she loved to do. She did it well."
Paula Carruth said Marines from across the country plan to attend the funeral. That, she said, is what Marines do.
"My heart goes out to the Marines who were with my daughter and their families," Carruth said. "People told me that my daughter was very, very good friends with these young gentlemen and they took care of her."
Others killed in the attack were: Cpl. Miguel A. Guzman, 21, of Norwalk, Calif.; Lance Cpl. James F. Kimple, 21, of Carroll, Ohio; and Sgt. Glen E. Martinez, 31, of Boulder, Colo.
Ellie