Marine Lance Cpl. Michael L. Starr Jr.

Died January 26, 2005 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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21, of Baltimore; assigned to 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Marine Corps Base Hawaii; killed Jan. 26 when the CH-53E helicopter in which he was riding crashed near Rutbah, Iraq. Twenty-nine Marines and one sailor also were killed.

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Marine killed in chopper crash “loved what he was doing”

Associated Press

BALTIMORE — A Baltimore Marine killed in a helicopter crash in an Iraqi sandstorm once looked forward to a career in the military.

But recently, Lance Cpl. Michael L. Starr Jr., 21, of Edgemere told his family that he hoped to transfer out of Iraq and use his four years of military experience in a career as a Baltimore police officer.

Starr was killed Wednesday, along with 30 other servicemen, in what has been described as the U.S. military’s deadliest day so far in the Iraq war. The helicopter was taking the servicemen to the Syrian border to provide security for Sunday’s elections.

“He loved what he was doing, making a difference,” Starr’s father, Michael Starr Sr., told The (Baltimore) Sun.

Starr joined the Marine Corps in May 2001, shortly after graduating from Perry Hall High School. He attended infantry school in September of that year, training to become a rifleman, officials said.

“He had a lot of friends, a lot of friends, and he recruited a lot of friends into the Marines,” his mother, Robin Starr, told WBAL-TV.

Starr arrived at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in October 2002 and went to Iraq with his unit in September, the Marines said. The unit was in the first wave of Marines sent to secure Fallujah.

Michael Starr never complained about conditions in Iraq, but he became homesick, his mother said. “He was very proud to be a part of American history. He was very proud of what he did, and he was very comforted in the fact that he thought he was protecting his family.”

The cause of the CH-53E Super Stallion crash was still under investigation. “We think it’s an accident, but we don’t know for sure,” said Lt. Col. Owen Lovejoy, executive officer of the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, the unit to which 27 of the dead belonged.

Those troops who perished in the helicopter crash, including Starr, were from the Kaneohe Bay base in Hawaii, the military said. It was the heaviest loss of Hawaii-based troops since Pearl Harbor.

“The Marines were so important to him, really motivated him, and he was an honor student in his senior year because he was so pumped up about being a Marine,” his mother told The Sun.

In an e-mail to his mother, Starr wrote about being hit by some metal in the chin and lip, about a friend who was killed and about another who lost an arm and a leg in battle: “I remain focus(ed) knowing where I still am. I love you and want you to know I am fine and content knowing I fought house to house like the Marines in Hue City in Vietnam. ... And I’m a huge part of American history now.”

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Friends, family recall Marine’s love for the Corps

DUNDALK, Md. — From the accounts given by friends and family at his funeral on Thursday, Lance Cpl. Michael Starr Jr. was an All-American boy who loved the Marine Corps and badly wanted to serve his country.

Even before he graduated from Perry Hall High School, Starr worked hard to prepare himself for a military career that led him to Iraq. His unit was one of the first to enter Fallujah, where he was wounded and returned to battle.

His sister, Jennifer, tearfully told mourners gathered in front of his flag-covered casket that Starr was proud “to be a part of American history.” She described how he was content to have fought house-to-house like the Marines in Hue City in Vietnam.

She said her brother lived a full life in his 21 years, describing him as a loving son and brother, a hero who always gave her “a shoulder to cry on.”

“Michael is gone, but he will never be forgotten,” she said.

Friends and family members who spoke frequently talked through tears and cracking voices throughout the somber farewell at the Duda-Ruck Funeral Home in Dundalk.

Starr was one of 31 servicemen killed when their helicopter crashed in western Iraq last month. He died on what U.S. military officials have called the deadliest day so far in the Iraq war. The helicopter was taking the servicemen to the Syrian border to provide security for elections. The cause of the CH-53E Super Stallion crash was still under investigation, but officials have said they believe it was an accident.

Starr’s drive to become a Marine — and the effort he put toward preparing himself for the Corps — was how Nancy Eckels, his high school guidance counselor, remembered him.

“He was just a real wholesome kid,” she said.

Starr became a Marine in May 2001, not long after he graduated from high school. Starr arrived at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in October 2002, and deployed to Iraq in September.

After the service, local residents stood on sidewalks as mourners drove to a cemetery. Men with somber expressions saluted or put their hats over their hearts as the procession rolled by. Some held flags or held signs.

“This Marine Mom and Dad Say Thank You,” was written on one sign.

Starr was buried at Parkwood Cemetery with a 21-gun salute.

— Associated Press