Remembering a fallen hero
Maj. William Allen presents the Marine Corps colors, signed by Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines from Ohio, to Mrs. Sharon Long, mother of fallen Marine Lance Cpl. Grant Fraser. Fraser who was from the Anchorage area attended the University of Alaska Anchorage for one semester, when he realized college life wasn't the challenge he was seeking.
So, he enlisted into the Marine Corps and became part of the Echo Company, 4th Reconnaissance Battalion (now Delta Company, Anti-Terrorism Battalion) located between Elmendorf and Fort Richardson. While deployed in Iraq, Fraser and 13 fellow Marines were killed in action Aug. 3, 2005 when the Amphibious Assault Vehicle they were in struck a roadside bomb. Mrs. Long said, "We are gratified that the unit and his fellow Marines continue to remember him and to stay in touch with the family, it's the stories and those connections that keep him alive." (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Jonathan Steffen)