Marine Lance Cpl. Anthony J. Rosa

Died September 23, 2010 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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20, of Swanton, Vt.; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.; died Sept. 23 at Camp Dwyer, Afghanistan, of injuries received while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

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‘He was shot’ on patrol, family spokesman said

By John Briggs

The Burlington (Vt.) Free Press

Marine Lance Cpl. Anthony “Chuckie” Rosa, 20, of Swanton, Vt., was killed Sept. 23 in Afghanistan, the Defense Department confirmed late Sept. 24.

His death was confirmed earlier Sept. 24 by family friend Bill Rowell, who spoke from the family’s home. Rowell said a Marine, a Vermont state trooper and a city police officer went to the family’s home late Sept. 23 with news of Rosa’s death.

According to the Pentagon, Rosa died of wounds received while supporting combat operations in Helmand province. Rowell, the family friend, said Rosa was killed while on patrol. “He was shot,” Rowell said.

Rosa was assigned to G Company, 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, out of Camp Lejeune, N.C. He left the Marine training facility at Lejeune for Afghanistan several months ago, Rowell said.

Rosa graduated in 2008 from Missisquoi Valley Union High School. Franklin Northwest Supervisory Union Superintendent Jack McCarthy said the school was waiting to learn the family’s wishes before planning a memorial ceremony.

Rosa’s body arrived Sept. 25 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. Rosa said it then would fly on to Vermont in a National Guard plane.

“The Marine delegation will be here this evening to go through the paperwork with us,” Rowell said Sept. 24. “Anthony’s mother asked me to field the calls.”

Rosa is the 39th U.S. service member either from Vermont or with close ties to the state who has died in support of the wars in Iraq and in Afghanistan since March 2003.

This year, three other soldiers have died in Afghanistan, all Vermont guardsmen. Spc. Ryan J. Grady, 25, of West Burke was killed July 2; Sgts. Tristan H. Southworth, 21, of Walden and Steven J. Deluzio, 25, of South Glastonbury, Conn., were killed Aug. 22.

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Rosa remembered as a gentleman

The Associated Press

Anthony Rosa, a lance corporal in the Marines, recently asked his mom to send care packages to him in Afghanistan. He wanted to give them to soldiers who had never received anything from their families.

Such kindness is what made Rosa, nicknamed Chuckie, so popular among friends and neighbors in Swanton, Vt., where he grew up.

"He was a perfectly mannered gentleman," said Bill Rowell, a close friend of Rosa's family. "He wasn't perfect," Rowell added, "but he came closer to it than most."

Rosa, 20, also was known as an excellent golfer, an avid fisherman and a good student.

He joined the Marines a few months after graduating from Missisquoi Valley Union High School in 2008. He was serving in Afghanistan's Helmand province when he was killed Sept. 23 while on patrol. He was assigned to Camp Lejeune.

"It's a real big loss for the community," said Chris Ste. Marie, owner of Ste. Marie's Deli & Quick Stop, where Rosa worked in high school. "Chuckie was the type of kid that ... would have done something with his life, he would have done well for himself."