Remember Our Heroes
Marine Lance Cpl. Kane M. Funke, 20, of Vancouver, Wash.
Lance Cpl. Funke was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, Calif.; killed Aug. 13 by enemy action in Anbar province, Iraq.
Those who knew Kane M. Funke as a high school wrestler or hardened Marine may never have guessed he was born weighing 2 pounds, 6 ounces with a 10 percent chance of survival.
"He came into this world fighting, and he left fighting," said his uncle, Eric Funke.
By age 3, Funke was hyperactive and constantly running on tiptoe, Eric Funke recalled. Within five years, Kane Funke had decided he wanted to be a Marine and asked his uncle for old uniforms.
Funke grew up in Montana before moving to Vancouver and living with his stepfather. Friends say he skipped graduation for boot camp.
"He was doing what he always wanted to do since he was about 8 years old," said stepfather Dale Johnston. "That's about all he could think about, some branch of the military."
Funke was buried in Polson, Mont., where his uncle, Eric Funke, gave the eulogy: "At eight years old, Kane knew he wanted to be a Marine. He'd hide out in people's back yards at night all camou'ed [camouflaged] up."
In the hours before he died, Kane Funke tried calling his mother, Stephanie, but he got voice mail. “At least I still have his voice on my cellphone” she said. His message: “Hi, Mom. I love you. I’ll be there in two weeks.”
Marine Lance Cpl. Kane M. Funke was killed in action on 08/13/04.
2 comments:
Kane Michael Funke was one of my best freidns in high school. I was most likely one of the last people stateside to see him alive. He gave me the food off his plate and the shirt off his back on more than one occasion. I think about him often, and I will never forget him. God bless all who knew him, and god forbid anyone who would forget this man. This soldier who knew what he wanted, and died doing what he loved, for those that he loved. Daniel James
Knew him in high school, good man. =)
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