Marine Cpl. Leopold F. Damas

Died August 17, 2009 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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26, of Floral Park, N.Y.; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.; died Aug. 17 while supporting combat operations in Garmsir, Afghanistan.

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Gunny, lance cpl. die in Afghanistan

Staff report

Two North Carolina-based Marines were killed Aug. 17 supporting combat operations in Afghanistan, according to the Defense Department.

Gunnery Sgt. Adam F. Benjamin, 34, of Garfield, Ohio, died Aug. 18 and Lance Cpl. Leopold F. Damas, 26, of Floral Park, N.Y., died Aug. 17. Both died in Helmand province. Both were assigned to units with the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, but it’s not clear if the incidents were related.

Benjamin was assigned to Camp Lejeune’s 8th Engineer Support Battalion, according to a news release. No other information about him was immediately available.

Damas was a rifleman with the Lejeune’s 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines. He joined the Corps in January 2006. In February, he returned from his second seven-month tour in Iraq since 2007, and then left for Afghanistan in May.

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Marine mourned at funeral in NYC

The Associated Press

NEW YORK — Relatives and friends have paid their final respects in New York City to a Marine killed in Afghanistan after serving two tours in Iraq.

Lance Cpl. Leopold Damas was remembered at a Queens church Saturday for his bravery, determination and dedication to the Marine Corps. Gerard Damas says his younger brother lived a longtime dream by joining the corps and “was exactly where he wanted to be.”

The 26-year-old Damas died Aug. 17 in Helmand province. Originally from Haiti, he joined the Marines after graduating from a Queens high school.

He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, based out of Camp Lejeune, N.C. He will be buried in Charlotte, N.C.