A Stryker brigade soldier who was stateside just last month for the birth of his son was killed Thursday in Iraq, the military reported.
Pfc. Luigi Marciante Jr., 25, of Elizabeth, N.J., died in Muqdadiyah, about 50 miles northeast of Baghdad, after an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle, according to a Department of Defense statement.
The military also announced Friday the death of a Stryker brigade medic from an undisclosed illness.
Cpl. Graham M. McMahon, 22, of Corvallis, Ore., died Wednesday at the U.S. military hospital at Balad, Iraq, of an illness that was not related to combat, the Pentagon said in a news release.
Both men were assigned to the 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, Stryker Brigade Combat Team based out of Fort Lewis.
Marciante’s brother-in-law, Richard Jacobowitz, said in a phone interview Friday that the fallen solider was “a patriot kid, a good kid who just wanted to serve his country.”
Marciante, who was known as Louie, looked forward to coming home early next year to be with his wife, Stephanie, and help raise their newborn, Lorenzo.
He hoped to pursue a career in law enforcement, following after his father, who served as a police officer in Italy, Jacobowitz said.
“He was just a regular guy,” he said. “He liked to listen to music and DJ when he could.”
Marciante, who was assigned to the brigade’s 2nd Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, followed the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Yankees, his brother-in-law said.
His sister, Enza Jacobowitz, was inspired by her brother’s service and earlier this year set up a Web site to raise money for the Achilles Track Club, which helps those with disabilities, including wounded veterans, participate in athletics.
“Many of you know my brother PFC Luigi Marciante Jr. was recently deployed to Iraq,” she says in a posting on the site, www.firstgiving.com/enza. “It is because of this experience hitting all too close to home that I am motivated to participate in this (charity) race. Louie is my motivation to pay it forward, and I hope he will be yours too.”
McMahon was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment. He deployed to Iraq with the brigade in April, Fort Lewis officials said.
He joined the Army in May 2004 in Portland and arrived at Fort Lewis in November after training at Fort Sill, Okla., and Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
Officials at Fort Lewis declined Friday to identify the nature of McMahon’s illness, citing medical privacy.
He and Marciante are the 25th and 26th soldiers from the brigade to have died in Iraq.
Ian Demsky: 253-597-8872
Staff writer Michael Gilbert contributed to this report.
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