Marine Pfc. Joshua P. Klinger

Died June 14, 2005 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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21, of Easton, Pa.; assigned to 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.; killed June 14 when an improvised explosive device exploded while he was conducting combat operations near Fallujah, Iraq.

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Pennsylvania Marine killed in Iraq

Associated Press

EASTON, Pa. — A Marine from the Easton area was killed in Iraq on Monday by shrapnel from a roadside bomb, his family said.

Joshua Klinger, 21, of Williams Township, was killed in Anbar province around 5 p.m. on Monday, said his mother, Sharon Klinger. He was a member of the 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, based at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

A Marine spokeswoman did not immediately confirm the death, but the family said the military notified them Tuesday.

After graduating from Wilson Area High School in 2002, Klinger took computer classes and held a few odd jobs before enlisting at age 20. He had been in Iraq since March.

“He wanted to see the world,” Sharon Klinger said. “He wanted to make something of his life, and he had been thinking about the military since high school. He wanted to make us proud of him, and we are so proud of him and his choices.”

Klinger’s job was to hunt for roadside bombs and weapons caches. In conversations with his family he described the conditions in Iraq as “terrible,” with buzzing flies and garbage rotting in the streets.

“He said he hated it, couldn’t wait to get home. But then he’d say it wasn’t that bad,” his mother said.

Although quiet, he expressed himself through music. He spent hours composing songs at a computer in the family room. He also played guitar and piano and could pick up any song by ear.

“He could bare his soul to the keys, and nobody would talk back,” Sharon Klinger said. “It was a wonderful outlet for him.”

Along with his parents, he is survived by a sister and brother.