Marine Lance Cpl. Curtis M. Swenson

Remember Our Heroes

Marine Lance Cpl. Curtis M. Swenson, 20, of Rochester, Minn.

LCpl Swenson was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii; died April 2, 2010 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

The last time U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Curtis M. Swenson played for his church's youth softball team, the Bethel Believers, he smashed two home runs, one of them a grand slam.

That was just one of the memories friends and family have been sharing as they mourn the 20-year-old Rochester resident who died Friday in Helmand province, Afghanistan, while supporting combat operations.

"He was a good mentor for our younger youth—people looked up to him," said the Rev. Norman Wahl of Bethel Lutheran Church in Rochester, where Swenson was active in youth activities.

More than 1,600 people have joined a Facebook page in Swenson's memory created by his younger sister Emily, who attended Mayo High School with him. Funeral arrangements are still being scheduled.

Among those posting messages on Swenson's Facebook page was Cpl. Cody Wright, who said a memorial service for Swenson will be held April 10 at COP (combat outpost) Sullivan in Afghanistan.

"He was a good man and a damn fine marine," wrote Wright, who said he trained Swenson as a mortar man.

Swenson was assigned to 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force based in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. The Department of Defense today confirmed Swenson's death.

Others posting messages on the Facebook page included young people who knew Curtis through ski trips and other youth activities at Bethel, Wahl said.

"He was involved with pretty much everything we did," said Michael Beckmann, Bethel's youth director. "He was a good listener as well as a good friend to the younger kids in our youth group."

Wahl called Swenson a "quiet leader," a description Beckmann said was fitting. Swenson had a good outlook on life, Beckmann said, and set a positive example through his actions and how he responded to different situations.

"If he was around friends, he always had a good sense of humor and was able to make a lot of people laugh," Beckmann said.

Swenson was a good student who was well-liked by his classmates, the Rochester school district said Monday in a statement.

"We are proud of Curtis and thankful to him for his service to our country," the statement says. "The thoughts of the entire Mayo High School community are with his family, friends and loved ones."

Emily Swenson said her family would like to share their memories of Curtis at a later date.

A Facebook memorial page set up in his honor by his sister, Emily Swenson, 19, a 2009 Rochester Mayo graduate, had more than 1,500 members late Monday and was drawing hundreds of sorrowful comments from friends and strangers alike.

"Everyone who knew and loved him is welcome to join, along with anyone else," Emily wrote on the page, which is called RIP LCPL Curtis Michael Swenson. "Every thought and prayer means so much to my family and I."

After getting support from more than 2,000 people on Facebook in recent days, the family of a Rochester Marine killed in Afghanistan last week say they are overwhelmed by kind words from friends, family and people they've never met.

"It's mind-boggling," said Kay Swenson, the mother of Lance Cpl. Curtis M. Swenson, 20, a 2007 Mayo High School graduate. "It's really been a comfort."

Swenson's family returned to Rochester on Monday night from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, where they attended a ceremony marking the return of the soldier's body to American soil. Swenson is the 1,037th American solider to die in Afghanistan since 2001, according to icasualties.org, a site that tracks coalition deaths.

"It was devastating," Swenson's father, Dave, said Tuesday as he recalled the experience of seeing his son's flag-draped coffin.

News of Curtis' death arrived for the Swensons on Friday afternoon when a black SUV parked in the driveway of their southeast Rochester home and two Marines got out.

Dave Swenson recalls standing frozen with his hands in a questioning gesture as they approached. No words needed to be spoken, he said, for him to realize his son had passed away.

Curtis died while serving as a turret gunner assisting a military vehicle damaged by a roadside bomb, Dave Swenson said. Curtis's Humvee hit another, very powerful explosive device, he said. The explosion flipped his vehicle and crushed his chest.

On Tuesday, Swenson's family talked about the many memories they have of Curtis. Family camping trips, his dimples, deer hunting, and his wedding last August to a woman who made his eyes light up when he talked about her.

One by one, the stories brought laughter and tears.

"We News of Curtis' death arrived for the Swensons on Friday afternoon when a black SUV parked in the driveway of their southeast Rochester home and two Marines got out.

Dave Swenson recalls standing frozen with his hands in a questioning gesture as they approached. No words needed to be spoken, he said, for him to realize his son had passed away.

Curtis died while serving as a turret gunner assisting a military vehicle damaged by a roadside bomb, Dave Swenson said. Curtis's Humvee hit another, very powerful explosive device, he said. The explosion flipped his vehicle and crushed his chest.

On Tuesday, Swenson's family talked about the many memories they have of Curtis. Family camping trips, his dimples, deer hunting, and his wedding last August to a woman who made his eyes light up when he talked about her.

One by one, the stories brought laughter and tears.

"We spent a lot of time with him, and now we know why," Dave Swenson said.

Curtis Swenson's body is tentatively set to arrive in Rochester at 4 p.m. Friday. Details aren't final, but the visitation could be at 6 or 7 p.m. Friday and the church service Saturday morning, both at Bethel Lutheran Church. Burial is possible Saturday afternoon at the Stone Church near Houston, where Swenson's grandfather is buried. The church is also near a family farm and a spot where he and his father hunted deer.

"That's where he belongs," Dave Swenson said. "He loved it down there."

In the meantime, Swenson's family is banding together for support and getting comfort from friends and others. The many condolences have helped the family deal with its grief, Dave Swenson said, but he has a hard time answering when people ask him how they can help.

"There's one thing I want and no one can give it to me," he said. "I want my son back."

Marine Lance Cpl. Curtis M. Swenson was killed in action on 4/2/10.