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By Linda Bolton
linda@mckenziebanner.com |
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Mike and Molly Morel of McKenzie received the
devastating news early Thursday morning that their
only son, U.S. Marine Captain Brent Morel, had been
killed in the line of duty Wednesday in Fallujah,
Iraq, west of Baghdad.
The Morels were notified when U.S. Marines knocked on
their door on Laurelwood Lane at 3 a.m. to deliver the
news.
"I looked out the side windows and saw the Marines,"
said Molly, "I knew before I ever opened the door."
Capt. Morel, age 27, was commanding his reconnaissance
platoon, when the platoon was ambushed by an
unexpectedly large group of insurgents. Captain Morel
received a fatal wound to the chest, while five others
were injured in the attack.
The Morels share their story this week in order for
fellow Americans to know that Brent strongly believed
in the cause for which he was fighting.
"He believed that it was the right and just thing to
do," said Molly.
Capt. Morel and his platoon had been in Fallujah about
three weeks and were there to relieve a U.S. Army
unit.
Molly said her son had written one long letter and
sent several brief e-mails during his time there.
Capt. Morel is one of 642 U.S. servicemen who had been
killed as of Thursday, when the family received the
news. Of those, 448 have died as a result of hostile
action.
Originally from Memphis, the Morels moved to McKenzie
in 1995. However, Brent had already transferred from
the University of Memphis to the University of
Tennessee at Martin. While a student there, he met his
future wife Amy Mullins, who was a resident of
Memphis.
Brent desired a military career from an early age. He
joined the Marine Reserves in 1995 while still at the
University of Memphis. Over two summers, he attended
Officer Candidates School at Quantico, Virginia before
receiving his bachelor of arts degree in history at
UTM in May, 1999.
"He graduated one week, got his officer's commission
the next week, and got married the next week," said
Molly.
Last June, he returned from a 10-month deployment in
Okinawa, Japan, then received orders in November to go
to Iraq with the 2nd Battalion, 1st Regiment.
The family is comforted by the fact that Brent went to
battle as a Christian.
"He and his dad had talked about that before he left,"
said Molly. "His dad wanted to make sure he had
everything in order.
"He (Brent) reassured him that he did and that if
anything happened he would see us in Heaven," she
said.
"He was stationed at Camp Pendleton, California (near
San Diego) where his wife, Amy, chose to stay during
his service in Iraq," related Molly. The couple had no
children.
She noted that Amy received word of her husband's
death first, but was advised by the chaplain at Camp
Pendleton to allow military personnel to notify
Brent's parents in person.
"They had to get Marines from Nashville to come tell
us," she said.
The Morels said Brent was originally assigned to
infantry, but later went through reconnaissance school
to enter that field. While stationed in Iraq, his
company had regularly performed reconnaissance
missions regarding movement of enemy forces.
Brent's goal in the military was to become a four-star
general, said his mother.
"I knew he had to have war experience for that," she
said soberly.
Molly said several Marines who had the privilege to
serve under Brent had called their home since
receiving the news of his untimely death.
Their message was, "He was the best, he was so
dedicated."
"They told us they were proud to serve with him," she
said.
Mike remembers Brent as a true leader.
"He was a Marine's Marine. He was always in front,
never behind," he said. "He looked after his men and
never asked them to do anything he wasn't willing to
do himself."
After moving to Carroll County in 1996, Mike was
self-employed as a certified registered nurse
anesthetist at Baptist Hospital in Huntingdon for
eight years. He is now serving in the same capacity at
Volunteer Community Hospital of Martin.
Molly, who is originally from Martin, also works at
Martin Anesthesia Group. She formerly completed
several years of volunteer work with Habitat for
Humanity in Carroll County.
Community Grieves With Family Following Death
Local communities have also provided a continuous
outpouring of support to Mike and Molly Morel since
learning that their son, Capt. Brent Morel was killed
during hostile action in Iraq last week.
"The love and support has been tremendous," said
Molly. "People have come by, brought food, flowers and
gifts."
Monetary gifts will be used to establish a scholarship
fund in Brent's name, said the Morels.
"People have called from other states that we don't
even know, just to talk," she said.
One especially meaningful visit was from the family of
Spc. Thomas Arthur Foley III, 23, formerly of Dresden,
who was killed south of Baghdad April 14, 2003. The
family members included Foley's grandmother, who
reared him, and an aunt and uncle, all of Dresden.
They came to share the family's grief and "to see if
we had any questions they might be able to answer,"
said Molly.
The Morel family has spent many hours talking to
newspaper and television reporters from Tennessee and
Kentucky as well as other states. One request for
interview came from as far away as San Diego,
California.
Family Focuses on Bringing Loved One Home
As the couple waited for news last week of when their
son's body would be returned to the United States,
they talked by phone to their daughter-in-law about
funeral arrangements.
Through Marine officials, they learned Friday evening
that his body had arrived in Dover, Delaware and would
be brought with a color guard to Memphis airport
sometime Tuesday.
Molly said during the Friday call, officials provided
the family with circumstances under which their son's
platoon was ambushed. They were told that he died at 4
a.m. Iraq time. Further details cannot be released to
the public because of security reasons.
Once in Memphis, Capt. Morel's body would be at
Memphis Funeral Home on Poplar Avenue. He will receive
full military burial at the National Cemetery, Forrest
Hill Irene in Memphis. At press time, tentative plans
called for funeral services to be Thursday or Friday.
Brent leaves a sister and brother-in-law, Marcy and
Richard Woods of Cordova and a niece, Madison Nelson,
of the same address. He also leaves his grandparents,
Paul and Georgette Smith of Martin, Tommy Morel of
Mount Juliet and Jo Ann Vester of New Johnsonville.
