Marine Cpl. William J. Woitowicz

Remember Our Heroes

Marine Cpl. William J. Woitowicz, 23, of Middlesex, Mass.

Cpl. Woitowicz was assigned to 2nd Marine Special Operations Battalion, Marine Special Operations Regiment, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, Camp Lejeune, N.C.; died while conducting combat operations June 7, 2011 in Badghis province, Afghanistan.

Cpl Woitowicz graduated from Groton-Dunstable Regional High School in 2007 where he played basketball. He joined the Marines shortly after graduating high school. He was an avid biker and was due home in two weeks.

In high school, Cpl Woitowicz earned the nickname "class flirt".

"He was a lady's man," former teacher, Michael Donnelly said, adding that he treated female friends with respect.

Donnely said that Woitowicz was a standout in his high-school engineering class who could have easily gone to college to follow in the footsteps of his older brother, who works as a construction engineer.

"I appreciated him so much because he had good work ethics," Donnelly said. "He was a good man," added Donnelly. "He was a fine student from a wonderful family. He was a son I would be proud to have. It just hurts.”

"Definitely, he lived by his word, and always went out of his way to do good things for his classmates and teachers," said Assistant Principal Marisa Brisson.

"He had an uncanny sense of humor," said Brisson, who was dean of students at the high school when Woitowicz attended. "He was very caring, and I would describe him as a gentle soul."

"He was one of those special kids that you never forget," said Dan Twomey, who was the high school's athletic director. He coached Woitowicz on the freshman basketball team, watched him play junior-varsity basketball and run in the cross-country team.

"More than anything, he was just a funny kid and he had fun with everything he did," Twomey said.

He was very friendly, very outgoing — always, always had a smile on his face,” said neighbor Kristin Lacombe. “Always willing to help you in a time of need. Just an incredible kid.”

Cpl Woitowicz's awards and decorations include:

Purple Heart
Combat Action Ribbon
Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal
National Defense Service Medal
Afghanistan Campaign Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Sea Service Deployment Ribbon
NATO International Security Assistance Force Medal.
Army parachutist wings

Sgt Woitowicz is survived by his parents, Rosemary and Kevin; older brother, Chris; younger sister, Amanda.

Marine Cpl. William J. Woitowicz was killed in action on 6/7/11.