A public service?

Here's the article I wrote about the Marine from Temple. When I left last night, I was an emotional wreck — it was just up and down all day — and I was really worried about this piece. I knew the beginning was fine, but the end is devoted only to quotes singing the kid's praises, which was all I could find on such short notice.

This morning, after talking it over with Clay, one of our veteran reporters, I felt better about the ending. Even if I took my sources at their word at the expense of my journalistic skepticism, I gave the family something nice for the scrap book. Let the kid have his day, Clay and I agreed.

By MATT WRIGHT
Lance Cpl. Louis W. Qualls, 20, of Temple, was one of two Marines killed Tuesday in Al Anbar Province, Iraq, the Department of Defense reported Thursday.

Qualls was the first Temple resident to die in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. A Belton man, Sgt. Daniel K. Methvin, 22, of the 4th Infantry Division, died July 26 from a grenade blast while guarding a children's hospital in Iraq.

Qualls was shot and killed while making door-to-door sweeps searching for insurgents in Fallujah, his father, Gary, said Thursday. Qualls was assigned to the Marine Corps Reserve’s 2nd Battalion, 14th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, stationed in Grand Prairie, Tx.

Sgt. Christopher T. Heflin, 26, of Paducah, Ky., also died as a result of enemy action in the province on Nov. 16. Heflin was part of the I Marine Expeditionary Force based at Camp Pendleton, Calif.

Al Anbar, located to the west of Baghdad, contains the insurgent strongholds of Fallujah and Ramadi and is the site of a U.S. military offensive to take control of both cities. Sixty Americans have died since the beginning of the offensive, and hundreds have been wounded, mostly Marines. The military told Qualls’s father that his son’s body will be returned in the next five to seven days.

Qualls was born and raised in Temple, his father said. He graduated from Temple High School in 2002, where he was a leader in the Air Force ROTC program, a linebacker on the football squad, a member of the track team and a top 10 percent graduate.

He was a Boy Scout and grew up attending the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, his father said. Qualls was also black belt in Tae Kwon Do, winning championships at the regional, state, national and junior Olympic levels. In addition, he and his father shared a passion for Harley Davidson motorcycles and went riding together often, Gary Qualls said.

Friends of the family say the strong bond between Louis and Gary, who served in three wars while with the Army and National Guard, played a major roll in Louis enlisting in the Marines.

“He had a strong family con-nection with his dad,” said Lt. Colonel Sid Thurston, the commander of the Air Force ROTC program at Temple High School for the past 10 years. “(Louis) felt a desire to honor his dad and serve his country. The young man had a true sense of duty, honor and country.”

Gary Qualls raised Louis and his younger brother David — now 15 and also a member of the Temple High School Air Force ROTC and football team — by himself, but he had no problem with his eldest son’s decision to follow in his foot-steps.

“The day my son turned 18, he had already signed up in the Marines, and that’s the day he left,” Qualls said. “I was so proud of him taking that step. It was his choice.”

Family and friends of Louis emphasized that although he wanted to emulate his father, he was also a young man who followed his convictions when he volunteered to serve his country.

Thurston said Qualls joined the Marines out of “love of coun-try.”

“I think early on this young man had a sense of who he was and what he wanted to be when he grew up,” Thurston said.

It was the quiet confidence of his convictions that made him stand out in the classroom, said Buris Dale, who taught Louis at Temple High School

“He made good decisions and he did not hesitate to stand by them,” Dale said. “High school kids, peer pressure, (they) didn’t bother Louis at all. If he thought it was right he was going to stand up and do it.”

And what was impressive, said Thurston, is that Louis always pulled it off with a smile on his face.

“He was an outstanding young man,” Thurston said, as did so many others who knew Louis.

Louis had enlisted in the Marines but transferred to the reserves as part of an arrange-ment with the government that would eventually move him to the Army, where he wanted to become a career special forces officer, his father said.

But before that happened, the opportunity to go to Iraq presented itself and Louis jumped at the chance. Once in Iraq, he served as a truck driver and as part of the offensive operations in the region, said Maj. Anthony Sermarini, a spokesman for the 14th regiment.

“He was with the first ones to step up and say, ‘I’ll go. I’m willing to do the job,’” his father said.

Lascelles McCarthy, a close family friend and the Tae Kwon Do instructor for all three Qualls men, said it was no surprise that Louis joined the Marines, who often take on the toughest assignments, and then volunteered for its most difficult engagement.

“That’s the way he was. When-ever he did something, he did it all the way,” McCarthy said. “He never went halfway on anything, he just did it all the way. He cared enough that he was willing to put his life on the line for what he believes in.”

And even though Louis never made it home from Iraq, his father takes solace knowing his son had taken so much from his experience.

He had written his father to tell him of the extreme poverty he had scene in Iraq as the Marines went from house to house.

“He said that he had witnessed what I had only told him from whenever I was in war,” Gary Qualls said. “And he said that he’s never felt so humble, and how much he realized that he truly had and how fortunate he was being an American. He gained more respect for life by going over there to fight for life.”

Qualls’s death was already being recognized around the city on Thursday. High school Principal J.J. Villarreal said the flag had been lowered to half-staff, and Mayor Bill Jones III took time at Thursday’s city council meeting to honor Qualls.

Gary Qualls said the ROTC at Temple High School is interested in starting a scholarship in honor of Louis, which he feels would be a fitting way to remember his son.

“I would like to have all the support I could get to help others, he said. “Because that’s all I’ve ever done is try to help other people, and my sons have done the same thing. And I would like for (Louis) to continue on, even though he’s not here. And that’s one way we can always continue serving is to help someone else.”

Although the news had not spread throughout Temple High School on the Thursday, Dale said, Louis’s sacrifice is certain to leave a lasting impression.

“It’s devastating. It brings everything close to home,” he said. “You think about the freedoms that you have. And I’m sure when I think about these freedoms, I’ll think about Louis Qualls.”

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Also included in my coverage:

Louis Qualls’s last postcard home arrived just days before the news of his death. His father Gary, returning from a hunting trip, found and read the card only an hour before Marine officials arrived at his door to tell him that Louis had been killed during operations in Fallujah.

The card read, “Dad, now that I’m so far away, I fondly recall the times we shared together. These special moments, those special days. Now from this distance, I look back and see how very much I appreciate all you have done for me. Now across these miles, I want to say I wish I were there with you now. And above all, you’re a great dad.”

Louis’s final letter home, contained inside the card, is reprinted below.

“Dear Dad,

“Well, I saw this postcard at the PX. When I read it, it summed up all my feelings and my thoughts at the moment, so I only thought it appropriate to get it for you.

“Well there’s a lot going on here. They say the next month will probably some of the most serious combat that the war has yet to see. And, well, I’m right in the middle of it.

“I think I’m truly scared, because not just knowing I’m going to be in a fight, but I fear it’s a fight for my life. So, Dad, I need your prayers and your advice more than ever. I know you’ve always been there for me, and I know you always will be. I just can’t wait to come home.

“I just want you to know that no matter what happens in the next weeks, that I’ve always looked up to you and I always will. You know kids (idolize) some football players or some-thing around those lines, but me, I’ve always (idolized) and looked up to you. And I’ve always thought, ‘Damn, I can only dream of doing the things you’ve done.’

“Well, I love you, and I’ll be home soon. We’ll look forward to hearing from y’all soon. And tell Cathy thanks for the e-mails.

“Your son, Louis.”

Number 1,216 and counting...