Dennis James Burrow – Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps

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U.S. Department of Defense
Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)
News Release
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 600-09
August 10, 2009

DoD Identifies Marine Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Lance Corporal Dennis J. Burrow, 23, of Naples, Florida, died August 7, 2009 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.


23-year-old Lance Cpl. Dennis J. Burrow of Naples died August 7, 2009, in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

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He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.

According to the Department of Defense, he joined the Marine Corps in June 2006 and was promoted to the rank of lance corporal on September 1, 2007.

Burrow supported Operation Iraqi Freedom from November 2007 to May 2008 and was in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in May 2009.  His awards include the Iraqi Campaign Medal and Global War on Terrorism Service Medals.


10 August 2009:

Courtesy of The Naples (Florida) News

NAPLES, Florida — Looking for a change of pace, Dennis James Burrow moved from Maryland to Naples a few years back.

After working for a while as a waiter and a bartender, Burrow, 23, joined the U.S. Marines, said his best friend, Jack Hagan, 23.

The Department of Defense announced Monday that Burrow, a lance corporal, had been killed Friday while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan, as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. His address was listed as Naples, though Hagan said Maryland was still home.

“It’s like losing a brother,” said Hagan, who has known Burrow since elementary school. “He was the closest thing you could have to a brother without actually being family.”

Two other Marines from his company were killed the same day, according to Defense officials: Lance Corporal Janier Olvera, 20, of Palmdale, California, and Lance Corporal Patrick W. Schimmel, 21, of Winfield, Missouri,

Burrow was an assaultman assigned to Company G, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade out of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.

In a written statement, Marine Captain Timothy Patrick said that Burrow joined the Marine Corps in June 2006 and was promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal on September 1, 2007.

Burrow deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from November 2007 to May 2008, and to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in May 2009. His awards include the Iraqi Campaign Medal and Global War on Terrorism Service Medals.

Burrow was home in Maryland for about a week before shipping off to Afghanistan, Hagan said. They went out to a bar to have fun. The last thing Hagan said he remembered telling Burrow was to be careful, to keep his head down, and to call when he could.

“When you hear about this stuff, you never think it’s going to happen to you, especially for your best friend,” Hagan said.

Hagan described Burrow as a “goofball,” who was into computers and good at math.

“He couldn’t have been more of an honest person, and he would drop anything he was doing to help you, for anything that you needed,” Hagan said. “He was there all the time.”

Nick Marsit, commander of the Naples detachment of the Marine Corps League, was struggling to make sense of the loss Monday, especially as community members tried to learn more details about the 23-year-old.

“It’s very sad, and we’re going to do whatever we can to help the family, and if necessary, we’re going to be part of whatever is going to take place,” said Marsit.

Burrow’s last known address in Naples is a now-abandoned home on Highlands Drive. A neighbor said Burrow had not lived there in years.

Regardless of Burrow’s connection to the area, though, Marsit said, Burrow will always have a home in the hearts and minds of his fellow Marines.

“One Marine is never going to forget another Marine,” Marsit said. “He’s one of us.”

Burrow and his fellow Marines who died Friday become part of a rising trend of violence claiming the lives of Americans in Afghanistan.


11 August 2009:

NAPLES, Florida – Friends say a Naples marine killed in Afghanistan was a man who put his country first.

Lance Corporal Dennis James Burrow died Friday in an attack in the Helmand province in Afghanistan. He was an assault-man assigned to Company G, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade.

The 23-year-old Marine is originally from Maryland, but the military lists his home as Naples.

His friend tells he came here to get away and relax, when he wasn't busy serving our country.

“Freedom isn't cheap. It comes with death,” Kim Kolakoski says. “For someone to go there and die fighting for us. It was the worst fear. It hurts more than I ever thought it would,” Kolakoski says.

She first met Burrow through a mutual friend three years ago. She tells us Burrow came to Naples to get away.

“From the tough life of being a Marine, he'd come here and go to the beach and just relax with friends,” Kolakoski explains.

Many of those friends and others around the world leave their condolences on Burrow's Facebook page. Kolakoski says Burrow had a great sense of humor and was excited to head to the Middle East.

“He knew he'd be fighting. He knew he'd be protecting our freedom, and that's something he cherished,” she says.

Officials at the Marine Corps Base Camp LeJeune say Burrow joined the Marine Corps in June 2006 and was promoted to the rank of lance corporal on September 1, 2007.

He deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from November 2007 to may 2008, and to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in May 2009.

Lance Corporal Burrow's awards include the Iraqi Campaign Medal and Global War on Terrorism Services Medals.

Kolakowski last spoke with Burrow before he left for his latest tour of duty.

“I remember telling him to be safe and just to watch his back,” she says.

Now that Burrow is gone, Kolakoski wants him to be remembered as someone who lived to serve his country.

“I want him to be remembered as a proud military man, who died fighting for this country. That's what I want,” Kolakoski says. “Someone that went there on his own will and wanted to do nothing more, than help this country out.”

Kolakoski says Burrow does not have any family in Naples. We tried to get a hold of some relatives in Maryland, but did not have any luck.

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The Remains of Lance Corporal Dennis James Burrow being transferred at Dover Air Force, Delaware

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