U.S. Department of Defense
Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)
News Release
IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. 344-11
April 25, 2011
DOD Identifies Marine Casualties
The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of two Marines who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
The following Marines died April 23 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan:
Sergeant Sean T. Callahan, 23, of Warrenton, Virginia
Lance Corporal Dominic J. Ciaramitaro, 19, of South Lyon, Michigan
Callahan and Ciaramitaro were assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
For additional background information on these Marines, news media representatives may contact the 2nd Marine Division public affairs office at 910-378-6193.
By Christy Goodman, Published: May 2, 2011
Courtesy of The Washington Post
A team of white horses carried Sergeant Sean T. Callahan’s flag-draped coffin on a caisson Monday as about 300 friends, family members and U.S. Marines followed to Section 60 in Arlington National Cemetery.
The Marine, who died April 23, 2011 in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, was buried with full military honors less than 24 hours after President Obama announced the death of Osama bin Laden. Callahan, 23, was killed after the convoy vehicle he commanded rolled over a makeshift bomb, said his father, Patrick Callahan. Lance Corporal Dominic J. Ciaramitaro, 19, of South Lyon, Michigan, also died in the explosion.
Marine Corporal Daniel Callahan, 26, saluted his little brother as a bugler played taps. Their older sisters, Heather, 34, and Melodie, 29, and mother, Janet, wept.
Being the youngest, Sean Callahan was always considered the favorite by his siblings, Patrick Callahan said. He had a tattoo of a heart with the word “Mom” on his arm that he would flash to win his mother’s favor, the elder Callahan said.
One of his sisters found temporary tattoos with the same design for the family to wear at the services.
Sean Callahan was born in Manassas but grew up in Gainesville. After he graduated from Brentsville District High School in 2005, his family moved to Warrenton.
Callahan’s friends described him as outgoing, full of life and a “Tasmanian devil” in dedications on Facebook and Legacy. He loved the beach, beer and music.
“Sean certainly wasn’t an innocent, but he had a smile that could turn any frown upside down,” his father said.
The guitar became Sean Callahan’s passion when he was in junior high, his father said. He studied with a jazz guitarist and played at family functions and with friends.
“He lived the life of a 60-year-old in 20 years,” Patrick Callahan said. “He packed it in.”
Patrick Callahan said he knew his son would join a police force or the military. He enlisted in the Marine Corps in March 2008.
“As hard as it is to fare this tragedy, he loved being a Marine. He loved having these guys around him,” Patrick Callahan said. “It was not a political situation. They have been given a mission. In their hearts, their mission was to defend the freedoms that are so often forgotten.”
The mother of a fellow Marine in Sean Callahan’s unit e-mailed the Callahans. Patrick Callahan said the woman recalled that her son called Sean Callahan “a rare breed” and “a natural born leader.”
“Sean earned every award and every promotion without putting on a show to get it,” Patrick Callahan said, reading the e-mail out loud. “He was the real thing. [Her son] said he was the kind of Marine who never needed to demand respect. He got it naturally.”
Callahan was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. He was deployed to Afghanistan in December and served one tour in Iraq in 2009.
His awards include the National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal and Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
Back at the cemetery, Daniel Callahan stood at attention to receive a flag in his brother’s honor. As the crowd left the grave site, Sergeant William J. Dixon, the Marine funeral director, gave Sean Callahan a final salute before leaving his white gloves on top of the coffin.
And Patrick Callahan thought about his family — and how it isn’t whole anymore.
“A guitar has six strings. There are six people in our family,” he said. “It is like someone came along and cut one of those strings. Something is missing.”
A Marine honor guard carries the casket of Marine Sergeant Sean Callahan who was killed in Afghanistan, during a burial service at Arlington National Cemetery Monday, May 2, 2011
The family of Marine Sergeant Sean Callahan look on during a burial service at Arlington National Cemetery May 2, 2011. From left are, brother Corporal Daniel Callahan, sister Heather Callahan, sister Melodie Callahan, father Patrick Callahan, and mother Janet Callahan
The folded flag which covered the casked of Marine Sergeant Sean Callahan is prepared for presentation to his family.
Friends of Marine Sergeant Sean Callahan hug near his casket after a burial service at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday, May 2, 2011.
CALLAHAN, SEAN T
SGT US MARINE CORPS
AFGHANISTAN
- DATE OF BIRTH: 06/14/1987
- DATE OF DEATH: 04/23/2011
- BURIED AT: SECTION 60 SITE 9515
- ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY
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Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.
Reviewed by: Michael Howard