Benjamin C Edinger
Date of Death: 11/23/2004
Age: 24
Incident Location: Anbar province, Iraq
Hometown: Green Bay
Branch of Service: Marines
Unit: 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company, II Marine Expeditionary Force
Unit Base: Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
Sgt. Benjamin C. Edinger of Green Bay, Wis.; assigned to 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.; died November 25, 2004, at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md., of injuries sustained November 14 from enemy action in Anbar province, Iraq.
At 6-feet-4 and in tiptop shape, Benjamin Edinger had the imposing look of a true Marine. Those who knew him best, though, talk about his softer side. "He was absolutely sweet. You use the term gentle giant and that absolutely described Ben," his uncle James Downey said.
Edinger graduated from high school in 1999 and attended the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh for a year but "felt he was wasting the money" because he was unsure what he wanted to do, his grandmother Barbara Downey said. While in the service, he decided to study to become a veterinarian. He planned to enroll at the University of Wisconsin in the fall and hoped to be a walk-on football player. "That was the last e-mail I got from him, indicated that he wanted to go to Wisconsin and play football," his uncle said.
Although a computer technician by trade, Sergeant Edinger was recruited to come to 2d platoon as a radio operator after his noteworthy service with 2d Force Reconnaissance Company, Task Force Tarawa during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He immediately made an impact on his team by mastering the difficult communication systems required of his job and applying this mastery during a shortened unit training phase and MEU Pre-Deployment Training Phase. His mastery of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force SIDS (MSIDS) data system allowed his team to provide Reconnaissance and Surveillance to 2d Bn, 5th Special Forces Group during their pre-deployment training for OIF II, thus marking a new relationship between these two units.
On 14 November, during a mission to extract from an Observation Post (OP), Sergeant Edinger's team was again engaged by an IED ambush. Although mortally wounded, Sergeant Edinger continued to man his gun, fighting for air, until he was relieved of it in order to receive medical attention. Sergeant Edinger was an inspiration to those around him with his physical courage, buoyant fighting spirit, and "never quit" attitude. He will be sorely missed by his platoon, and the Reconnaissance Brotherhood.
At 6-feet-4 and in tiptop shape, Benjamin Edinger had the imposing look of a true Marine. Those who knew him best, though, talk about his softer side. "He was absolutely sweet. You use the term gentle giant and that absolutely described Ben," his uncle James Downey said.
Edinger graduated from high school in 1999 and attended the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh for a year but "felt he was wasting the money" because he was unsure what he wanted to do, his grandmother Barbara Downey said. While in the service, he decided to study to become a veterinarian. He planned to enroll at the University of Wisconsin in the fall and hoped to be a walk-on football player. "That was the last e-mail I got from him, indicated that he wanted to go to Wisconsin and play football," his uncle said.
Although a computer technician by trade, Sergeant Edinger was recruited to come to 2d platoon as a radio operator after his noteworthy service with 2d Force Reconnaissance Company, Task Force Tarawa during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He immediately made an impact on his team by mastering the difficult communication systems required of his job and applying this mastery during a shortened unit training phase and MEU Pre-Deployment Training Phase. His mastery of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force SIDS (MSIDS) data system allowed his team to provide Reconnaissance and Surveillance to 2d Bn, 5th Special Forces Group during their pre-deployment training for OIF II, thus marking a new relationship between these two units.
On 14 November, during a mission to extract from an Observation Post (OP), Sergeant Edinger's team was again engaged by an IED ambush. Although mortally wounded, Sergeant Edinger continued to man his gun, fighting for air, until he was relieved of it in order to receive medical attention. Sergeant Edinger was an inspiration to those around him with his physical courage, buoyant fighting spirit, and "never quit" attitude. He will be sorely missed by his platoon, and the Reconnaissance Brotherhood.