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Entries in US Marines (4)

Sgt. Jeremy McQueary Obituary from The Republic

Thursday, February 25, 2010 at 9:52PM

Jeremy Ryan McQueary, 27, Nashville

Jeremy Ryan McQueary, 27, of Nashville, Indiana, died Thursday, February 18, 2010, during a combat offensive in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. He was a sergeant in the United States Marine Corps for seven years.

Born January 28, 1983, in Columbus, Indiana, he was the son, of Dallas Ray and Deborah Furnish McQueary.

He is survived by his wife, Rae Proffitt McQueary of Nashville; his infant son, Hadley North Mac McQueary; his mother and stepfather, Deborah and David Kleinschmidt of Columbus, Indiana; his father-in-law and mother-in-law, Raymond and Julie Perkins Proffitt of Nashville; one sister and her husband, Rebecca and Scott Willison of Columbus; his grandfather, Joseph Furnish of Alexandria, Indiana; five nieces; and many aunts, uncles and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his father, Dallas McQueary.

A memorial service, including full military honors, will be held at 3:30 p.m. Sunday at the Seasons Lodge and Convention Center in Nashville. Doors will open at 2:30 p.m. An informal celebration of life will follow the military honors.

The family suggests memorial contributions be given to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) or to the National Humane Society, in care of Bond-Mitchell Funeral Home, 1682 State Road 135 North, Nashville, IN 47448.

Online condolences may he sent to the family at www.bondmitchellfuneralhome.com.

Pastor Ed |

Local Hero Killed in Afghanistan

Monday, February 22, 2010 at 3:30PM

Please go to The Republic.com for this story.

Family reunited with fallen Marine

BY BRIAN SANDERS bsanders @therepublic .com

Fallen Marine and Columbus native Sgt. Jeremy McQueary was reunited with his family on Saturday.

The 27-year-old was killed Thursday by an improvised explosive device while serving in Afghanistan’s south-central Helmand Province.

McQueary’s stepfather and mother, David and Deborah Kleinschmidt, attended a dignified transfer ceremony Saturday to retrieve the soldier’s remains.

Held at the Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, the ceremony was for the unloading of several American flag-draped transfer cases, according to David Kleinschmidt.

Among the cases were four Marines, including McQueary. McQueary was carried off the plane first because he was the highest-ranking soldier of the group, Kleinschmidt reported Saturday afternoon before boarding a plan bound for home.

“It was extremely moving and emotional,” he said of the ceremony.

McQueary’s family waited with the families of other fallen soldiers for the ceremony to begin at the base’s Center for Families of the Fallen.

“It is a very nice and comfortable place where the families can gather and comfort each other or be alone with their thoughts,” Kleinschmidt explained.

“The staff is very caring and compassionate and several chaplains were available,” he added.

Funeral arrangements for Mc-Queary have yet to be set.

McQueary, a graduate of Columbus East High School, also is survived by his wife, Rae McQueary and their 5-month-old son, Hadley.

He received a Combat Action Ribbon and other service decorations and is due to receive a Purple Heart, according to his sister, Rebecca Willison.

U.S. Rep. Mike Pence, R- Ind., paid tribute Saturday to McQueary. “Sergeant Jeremy R. McQueary is an American hero and his passing is a profound loss for his family, this community and this nation,” Pence said. “The people of the United States and Afghanistan will never be able to pay the debt of honor and respect owed to Sergeant Jeremy McQueary, who gave his life in defense of our freedom. Our prayers and condolences are with his family, friends and loved ones as they mourn the loss of this American hero.”

In June 2008, McQueary survived a roadside bomb that detonated near his Humvee while serving in Iraq.

As of Friday, 907 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the 2001 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, according to U.S. Department of Defense.

Of that number, at least 703 have died as a result of hostile action in the Afghan region.

ASSOCIATED PRESS
A Marine carry team carries a transfer case containing the remains of Sgt. Jeremy R. McQueary, of Columbus, Saturday at Dover Air Force Base, Del.