CPL SEAN A STOKES
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| Birth: | February 6, 1983 Fremont Alameda County California, USA |
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| Death: | July 30, 2007 Al Anbar, Iraq |
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Sean was a extraordinary and gifted athlete, also playing and practicing baseball every chance he got. And rightfully so, he shared a birthday with many legends including Babe Ruth and Ronald Reagan. He enjoyed and excelled at fishing. Sean had an amazing ability to ‘sense’ the best spot to cast his pole. Even from a very young boy, he out fished the most seasoned lifelong fishermen. Needless to say, none of us went hungry on the days Sean went fishing. Sean joined the Marines on October 15, 2001, a month after the September 11 attacks. He had been talking to recruiters from all the Service Branches during his junior and senior years at Bear River, but ultimately decided to join the Marine Corps. 9/11 was a call to serve and many young men and women like Sean from coast to coast answered that call voluntarily, without question or doubt. This ‘quiet and retrospective’ young man took being a Marine very seriously. ‘Sean was a very straightforward young man who always wanted to do the right thing.’ This is how some people close to Sean described him. While still a private in the Marines, Sean was featured in a History Channel documentary called “Shootout: Fallujah”. http://www.history.com/minisites/shootout Military historian and award winning author Patrick O’Donnell wrote about Sean Stokes in his 2006 book, ”We Were One: Shoulder to Shoulder With the Marines Who Took Fallujah”. http://www.wewereone.com/ In addition to three Purple Hearts, Sean Stokes received the Combat Action Ribbon, the Iraqi Campaign Medal, the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, the Global War on Terrorism Expedition Medal and other awards. Sean was awarded the Silver Star Medal for Gallantry and Bravery in February, 2008. He was on his fourth tour when he died from wounds suffered while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq at age 24. USMC |
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This is the first installment of many more posts to come. The Legacy Project is proud and grateful to honor Sean and all his fellow service members. We have the opportunity to make the life and memory of Cpl Sean A Stokes a true legacy. This Project in Sean’s name is a reflection of the love and valor which all those who have sacrificed and paid the highest price in the name of Freedom share.
Love you and miss you Sean. And to all our Fallen Heroes, we are determined to cherish your memory, you will NEVER be forgotten. Semper Fi.
AMERICAN PATRIOTS
02/04/08 by Kevin Ferris – Philadelphia Inquirer
 Sean A. Stokes From a State of the Union that won’t be much quoted, a line for the military that can’t be repeated enough:“In the past year, you have done everything we’ve asked of you, and more. Our nation is grateful for your courage. We are proud of your accomplishments.”Take the case of one Marine, Sean A. Stokes of California. On Wednesday, his 25th birthday, he will be awarded the Silver Star for courage demonstrated during the hand-to-hand, street-fighting nightmare that was the Battle of Fallujah in November 2004.The honor will be presented posthumously.Stokes was killed by an IED blast on July 30, 2007, while on security detail during his third deployment to Iraq. His longtime friend Brad Adams also was injured, but survived. Stokes died in the arms of the battalion commander whose life he had saved.Stokes’ heroics on the battlefield were amply recorded in Patrick O’Donnell’s book We Were One and the History Channel documentary Shootout: Fallujah. Equally impressive was his struggle to remain in uniform, to stay and fight beside his fellow Marines.During 12 days of urban combat in Fallujah, Lima Company’s First Platoon fought house by house. Stokes was on point, kicking in the doors, never knowing whether an ambush awaited.He described the job in Shootout:”At each house I said a prayer, ‘Please, God, get me out of this one.’ When I come out of the house, I thank him, light up a cigarette and move on to the next one.”He was wounded twice. The first time was in an alley when his platoon was driven back by a grenade assault. Stokes took some shrapnel – again, with Brad Adams – but he kept up return fire, allowing his buddies to pull back safely. Stokes hid his wounds, fearing a mandatory evacuation. He wouldn’t abandon his platoon. Days later, First Platoon was entering yet another house. Lance Cpl. Philip Peterson later told O’Donnell: “There were four open doors, a stairwell, and one closed door. It was a black door on a black wall. It was the creepiest looking thing I’ve ever seen. Stokes and I looked at this door, and we both said: ‘We’ll save that one for last.’ “ But the door opened and an AK47 poked out, firing at knee level. The Marines returned fire, and as the door was shut, a grenade rolled out. The blast sent the 6-foot Stokes flying. “It was like being hit with a bowling ball,” he said later. There was more enemy fire, more grenades. The Marines scrambled to get out, but another blast knocked Stokes down again. Once outside, the platoon noticed he wasn’t with them. He was on the floor of the house, firing back at an enemy that was closing in. He ran out of ammo. The enemy was still firing, still lobbing grenades his way. Lance Cpl. Heath Kramer finally crashed through a door behind Stokes, who was woozy and disoriented from the succession of blasts, and dragged him outside. Earning two Purple Hearts and the admiration of his peers wasn’t enough to clear Stokes’ record. A second tour of Iraq brought a promotion, but the threat of discharge remained. He was offered a seven-month extension, with a third deployment, but after that he would be out. Gary Stokes advised his son to turn down the extension. “You done your part, buddy,” he told Sean. “You don’t need to do any more.” He was taken aback by Sean’s angry, vehement response. “I have to support all those guys,” Sean told his dad. “We have to support them all. I have to make sure I hold up my end of the bargain as long as I can.” Stokes didn’t want his family to worry, so he misled them about the deployment. He said he would be aboard ship, probably in the Mediterranean. Gary Stokes didn’t learn that Sean was actually in Iraq until the knock on the door at 6:30 a.m. on July 30. “Following your dreams shouldn’t kill you, but it killed Sean. It’s really just tragic,” says O’Donnell, who befriended Stokes and helped draft the Silver Star recommendation. Neither a medal, nor a nation’s thanks, can compensate for such a loss or fully honor such devotion and self-sacrifice. At best, we can promise to never forget, and determine to support all those guys, to hold up our end of the bargain as long as we can. YOUNG LEGEND KILLED IN AL ANBAR PROVINCENEAR KARMAH, Iraq (August 11, 2007) – Corporal Sean A. Stokes, killed July 30 in Al Anbar province, is a legend. Not because his body now lay still, rather because he lived a life of selfless devotion and valor that those who hear his story will never forget.
The warriors who know of Sean Stokes – the young private who took point in Fallujah, or the compassionate selfless Marine who put nothing before the safety of his brothers – will tell his story for ages to come. Those who have not yet heard of Sean Stokes needn’t look far. True accounts of his actions in Fallujah saturate the internet, and Stokes’ name peppers mainstream non-fiction war stories. His name is synonymous with heroism and passion, and the more we can tell his story, the more we honor his life and the hundreds of warriors like him who have gone before us and continue to fill our ranks.
Life and Death of a Warrior
Sean Stokes enlisted in the Marine Corps shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. He joined 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines Regiment in 2004 after running into trouble with his previous command. As punishment, he was busted down to the rank of private, and transferred to 3/1 – the next unit scheduled to deploy. A twist of fate perhaps, as Sean would make history in the coming months. Under normal circumstances, he would have been discharged.
“Sean wasn’t upset about it at all. He considered it an opportunity to prove himself and make new friends,” said 1st Lt. Jeffrey Sommers, Stokes’ platoon commander at the time.
Sommers’ description of Sean echoes that of Auburn, Calif., citizens who knew him. A high school guidance counselor described Sean as a young man who wanted to “develop into a real strong, ethical, moral human being.”
During Operation Phantom Fury, the reserved Marine would prove himself a Spartan in the streets. Sommers said he witnessed Stokes commit maniacal acts of bravery, to the point where the platoon commander questioned his sanity.
“I would see Marines do things and think to myself ‘Hey, glad everything turned out the way it did, but what the hell was going through your head?’”
One example comes from Nov. 10, when Stokes, who served as the front-walking “point man”, and his team were ambushed by enemy forces with grenades and automatic weapons fire. Stokes sustained shrapnel wounds in his lower legs and refused to be evacuated while he provided suppressive fire, allowing an adjacent unit to destroy the enemy.
Stokes walked point each day of the battle. He was the first Marine down every street, in every house and every room – hundreds of rooms. He was the first Marine to be attacked by the enemy and the first to report the situation to his squad leader. Bullets, grenades, rockets and roadside bombs were around every corner.
When asked to describe Stokes’ motives for taking the lead into so much danger, Sommers explained: “You don’t do it because of courage, and you don’t do it because you want to. Stokes probably did it because he knew there was more to the battle than the few seconds involved in opening a door.”
He continued: “That kind of compassion … I won’t really ever understand. Human factors in those situations take a grip of you long before honor, courage and commitment.”
Bing West, author of No True Glory, met Stokes during the battle of Fallujah and fondly recalled Stokes as “A grunt with (Lima Company) 3/1 with a great smile.
“He was then living on the third deck of a shot-out factory that I was sure would collapse around us,” said West. “Sean just laughed when I told him I was going to sleep outdoors. He had seen three weeks of non-stop action.”
According to a citation for a pending award, during the non-stop action Stokes saw the face of the death constantly and was wounded several times. What kept him going?
“At each house, I said a prayer,” Stokes later told a reporter. “Please God, get me out of this one. When I come out of a house, I thank Him, light up a cigarette and move on to the next one.”
When the dust settled and blood was rinsed from the streets, names of men like Sean Stokes who braved Hell on Earth rose from the ruins. Some Marines claim to have witnessed Stokes dispatch as many as ten insurgents, others say it was more than twenty.
After the battle, Stokes remained with 3/1, ran through another work-up cycle and deployed again in Sept. 2005 to Haditha, Iraq. During this time, he solidified his bond with his peers and built upon his reputation as the quiet warrior. He began to recover from his earlier career glitches and picked up rank and billets of responsibility. When the unit completed the deployment, Stokes was set to get out of the Marine Corps – but he didn’t.
“Sean was working at the gym on Pendleton, and I would see him every now and then and we’d talk,” said Sommers. When he told the battalion he was eager to extend his contract and deploy again with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, the staff was less than shocked. Another hero of Fallujah, Sgt. Bradley Adams, had volunteered to join the battalion for the Western Pacific deployment. The bond between Stokes and Adams gave each Marine no choice but to stand by his brother.
“Basically, each Marine said ‘I’m not going without him and he’s not going anywhere without me,’” claims Maj. Shannon Neller, Battalion Landing Team 3/1 Operations Officer.
Together, Stokes and Adams were assigned to the battalion commander’s Personal Security Detachment. On the battlefield, this meant constant convoy operations down bomb-ridden highways and snap tactical decisions in the interest of keeping the movement as safe as possible. Stokes and Adams, said Neller, initially conducted operations in separate vehicles but eventually made their way to the lead vehicle. Stokes was on point again.
“The (battalion) sergeant major called him ‘The Pathfinder’ out there,” said Neller.
Stokes’ last day on Earth went something like this:
Elements from Battalion Landing Team 3/1 were conducting Operation PEGASUS BRIDGE, a counter-insurgency effort in the Eastern Al Anbar province. Lima, India and Weapons companies were scattered across the area of operations, sweeping for weapons caches, roadside bombs and rooting out anti-coalition insurgents. Stokes and Adams, along with the commander’s Personal Security Detachment, were darting back and forth from company positions when the convoy stopped to sweep for IEDs near an existing crater. The Marines formed a “V” and stepped carefully along the roadside when a blast rocked the area. When the chaos subsided, two Marines were down – Stokes and Adams.
“As soon as they passed over the (radio) net PSD had taken two casualties, I knew it was those two,” Sommers said. “I knew if anything ever happened to PSD it would be those guys.” Sommers added he was almost certain Stokes walked point on the sweep. He had.
Celebrating the Death of a Warrior in Battle
There are many, many ways to cope with a loss. Combat Marines have a great deal of experience with the situation, and it is all too easy sometimes to say a quick prayer and hold back tears until a memorial service is held. Marines are not heartless; like Stokes, they share a sense of duty and know their mission must continue. By pressing on, we show the Marine is still with us, and we are respecting his conviction by standing by ours. Stokes’ steadfast dedication to his fellow Marines is one of legendary proportion.
“Sean was in his element here,” Sommers said, “this is where his heart was. A lot of people do this as a job, but he did it because he loved it. He paid the ultimate sacrifice to protect his brothers and keep them out of danger. He wasn’t fighting for the American people or the Marine Corps, he was here for Adams and the guys in his platoon.”
Sommers stressed the idea that Stokes’ selflessness was far beyond that of average young men.
“Everyone talks about ‘service before self, it’s all about the guy next to you,’ y’know? And they’re taught that, but some people definitely don’t live it. Stokes lived it.”
Marines will weep as they celebrate his life and his actions. Is there any place more fitting for a warrior to rest than in the hearts of fellow men who braved a land of danger? Absolutely not.
Corporal Sean A. Stokes, the Fallujah Point Man, battalion Path Finder, is a legend.
This Generation of Heroes
In the midst of a modern “Me Generation,” young men like Sean Stokes are few and far between. Type his name into an internet search, however, and you’ll see the word “Hero” pop up everywhere.
Stokes’ actions are boasted on sites like “Marinemoms.com”, “Patriotguard.org” and countless internet blogs from random observers, parents, wives, brothers, friends, leaders and subordinates. Stokes’ name is already synonymous with heroism in the most sacred of places: the heart of America.
To speak of legends in the warrior culture has become a history lesson. Dan Daly, Smedley Butler, and perhaps the most famous, Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller, who was awarded five Navy Crosses during his service from 1918 to 1955.
What about the Jason Dunham’s, the Brad Kasal’s, and the Sean Stokes’?
“Marines like Stokes have many names. His name might not have been Leonidas, but he would’ve filled the first ranks of ‘The 300.*’ Marines like Stokes are the closest thing to legend we have,” said Maj. Kevin M. Gonzalez, BLT 3/1 executive officer.
The birth of a legend can be overlooked, and the life of a legend is something special. Fortunately for Sean Stokes, a legend never dies.
(Rest in peace, warrior.)
AUTHOR’S NOTE: To tell the story of Cpl. Sean Stokes is an honor. This story is not meant to place an individual above his fellow Marines, but to highlight the warrior spirit of the United States Marine Corps and the thousands of young men like Sean Stokes who have shed blood on the battlefield in Iraq. Please pass this tale on to those in need of inspiration, guidance and spirit.
* ‘The 300’ comes from the Spartan Persian battle of Thermopolyae in 480 B.C. There, a small force of Greek soldiers – led by only 300 Spartans – held back an overwhelming force of Persians.
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God Bless this Brave American Warrior. Yes we will Honor the memory of this Patriot, and always think of him as the strong amazing Hero that he is!
God Speed….
The Pillow Lady
By: Christina Finn on Tuesday, October 7, 2008
at 6:28 pm
I served with Sean in Lima Company for all three tours into Iraq. I really got to know him up in Haditha, at the Dam and on our last deployment, where I tried to pursuade him and his good buddy Brad Adams to join the Sniper platoon where we were in need of experienced Marines with alot of combat experience. They almost took the bait I had set for them, but they were both content with their new jobs they had secured with PSD. I can still remember the conversation in the birthing I had with Sean, heading over to the middle east on our ship. The one thing that will set in my mind though was a day in Fallujah in 2004 when i was just finishing clearing a house with my squad and we were directly next to Seans squad across the road. I very vividly remember coming face to face with Sean holding another Marines rifle with a bullet hole through the breach of the M203 grenade launched while he also held his own rifle. The rifle he was holding was Hanks his team leader I believe, that had just been killed, and it was covered in blood. Another Marine came over and took a water bottle out to wash the blood from the rifle and I starred into Seans eyes for a minute while he stood there and got worked on while he appeared to be wounded and being worked on by one of our corpsman. It was sureal, and quiet for a second in all the chaos of the day and I will never forget that day, or the day that I heard the news he had been killed. I had a hard time knowing in my heart that one of the best Marines that I ever served with would not becoming home this last time with us, and I still do have a hard time with this fact. He talked to me about his brother and how he wanted the best for him in life no matter what he chose to do, it sounded like the Marines was on the table as an option and that Mom was not thrilled at all but Sean remained fixed on supporting his brother no matter what. I can’t wait to see you again Sean, next time we meet up I promise I’ll call you by your first name.
Chad
By: Chad Russell on Thursday, February 25, 2010
at 3:48 am
Sean, thank you for watching my back. i miss you man, rest in peace.
By: Heath Kramer on Friday, September 3, 2010
at 11:56 pm