Last Known Activity
MOGADISHU, Somalia - The death of a second Marine cast new doubt Tuesday on the United States' chances of rapidly withdrawing its combat troops from this lawless land. Lance Cpl. Anthony D. Botello, 21, of Wilberton, Okla., was the third American to die since U.S. forces came ashore Dec. 9 and his death underscored anew the huge task of pacifying Somalia. Botello was shot by a sniper while on a nighttime foot patrol near a stadium on Mogadishu's northside. The latest Marine casualty came only hours after U.S. army helicopter gunships and Belgian troops blasted with rocket and cannon fire a clan militia column heading for a rival militia's encampment near the southern port of Kismayu.
_________________
WILBURTON - Anthony David Botello left Wilburton behind to go around the world with the U.S. Marines. He must have meant to return, for he left behind the history of his life, a young bride and close family, and a town that claimed him as its own. But the Marines brought him home this week, and his town gathered to bury him. Lance Cpl. Botello was killed Jan. 25, the victim of a sniper's shot in Mogadishu, Somalia. Barely 21, he had joined the Marines to seek a better living than southeastern Oklahoma could offer. He was part of the U.S. effort to bring humanitarian relief to Somalia. Even though Botello was not part of an official combat operation, U.S. Rep. Bill Brewster's office said this week that the Pentagon will present his family a Purple Heart, along with other commendations. Wilburton schools were dismissed Wednesday, and local workers took time off from jobs to attend Botello's funeral in the high school auditorium. About 800 people filled the seats and stood against the wall. The end of the procession of cars to the cemetery, estimated by traffic officials at 21/2 miles long, did not arrive until the bugled "Taps" and the 21-gun salute sounded out. The packed auditorium was never silent. Constant coughing, throat-clearing and sniffing backed the funeral speakers - those uneasy noises people make when they are trying not to cry. Sharla Botello, who had dated Anthony since their early teens, married him when he graduated and is now a 20-year-old widow, cried before huge banks of flower arrangements and a photo of her solemn husband in Marine uniform. The funeral had a strong military influence. Pallbearers, crisp young men looking very much like the portrait of Botello, represented an Oklahoma City Marine battalion. With the family was Cpl. Jake Hardy, Botello's buddy in the Corps and fellow soldier on his last mission, who sat with him as he died and escorted the body on every minute of its journey home from Africa. Among the mourners were other Marines, some in uniform, some out of military dress for many years. Funeral speaker Douglas Dry mentioned them. Many never knew Anthony Botello, he said, but they mourned the loss of a member of the Marine family to which they belonged. For Wilburton, several generations came to take leave of one of their youngest - and brightest. "What are you going to say about the all-American boy? " posed Superintendent of Schools Buddy Enis. Botello the student "became everything you wanted him to be. He was handsome, intelligent, athletic. ... An energy and enthusiasm danced around him. " His high school football coach spoke, and big, burly Mike Hainzinger cried as he did. "He wasn't 6-foot-2. He didn't weigh 240 pounds. He didn't run the 4.5-40. But he was special all that time. " An angry reaction came with news of Botello's death, said Hainzinger, "at the Africans ... at the government that sent him over there. " He's soothed, he said, by the reminder that for several football seasons, "we tried to make memories every Friday night. " A hero named Anthony is part of those memories now, he said. It took a Marine, though, to answer the painful questions the town, and particularly the family, struggled with this week. Dry, a Wilburton attorney, Botello family friend and Marine reservist, explained simply that Anthony Botello was doing what Marines are called to do, and that sometimes Marines die answering those calls. Marines "are not politicians who make policy and decide world issues. We are warriors. "We train year-round (to do) what we hope our leaders don't ask us to do. " But they always ask, Dry said, and they "always will. " "We are the only country in the world with the strength to help such ... a country in need. " He noted that the class of 1990 sent two graduates to the Marine Corps. One was Anthony Botello. "As long as Wilburton keeps producing fine young men as Anthony, the Marine Corps will keep coming along and taking them ... asking them to serve. "I shall never again put this uniform on without thinking about Anthony Botello and his family. " (NewsOK, Oklahoma City)∼Lcpl Anthony David Botello, USMC.
Graduated Wilburton OK. High School, 1990
Football team member
Killed 1993 Mogadishu, Somalia.
Member Charlie Co 1st Batt 7th Marines
MOGADISHU, Somalia - The death of a second Marine cast new doubt Tuesday on the United States' chances of rapidly withdrawing its combat troops from this lawless land. Lance Cpl. Anthony D. Botello, 21, of Wilberton, Okla., was the third American to die since U.S. forces came ashore Dec. 9 and his death underscored anew the huge task of pacifying Somalia. Botello was shot by a sniper while on a nighttime foot patrol near a stadium on Mogadishu's northside. The latest Marine casualty came only hours after U.S. army helicopter gunships and Belgian troops blasted with rocket and cannon fire a clan militia column heading for a rival militia's encampment near the southern port of Kismayu.
_________________
WILBURTON - Anthony David Botello left Wilburton behind to go around the world with the U.S. Marines. He must have meant to return, for he left behind the history of his life, a young bride and close family, and a town that claimed him as its own. But the Marines brought him home this week, and his town gathered to bury him. Lance Cpl. Botello was killed Jan. 25, the victim of a sniper's shot in Mogadishu, Somalia. Barely 21, he had joined the Marines to seek a better living than southeastern Oklahoma could offer. He was part of the U.S. effort to bring humanitarian relief to Somalia. Even though Botello was not part of an official combat operation, U.S. Rep. Bill Brewster's office said this week that the Pentagon will present his family a Purple Heart, along with other commendations. Wilburton schools were dismissed Wednesday, and local workers took time off from jobs to attend Botello's funeral in the high school auditorium. About 800 people filled the seats and stood against the wall. The end of the procession of cars to the cemetery, estimated by traffic officials at 21/2 miles long, did not arrive until the bugled "Taps" and the 21-gun salute sounded out. The packed auditorium was never silent. Constant coughing, throat-clearing and sniffing backed the funeral speakers - those uneasy noises people make when they are trying not to cry. Sharla Botello, who had dated Anthony since their early teens, married him when he graduated and is now a 20-year-old widow, cried before huge banks of flower arrangements and a photo of her solemn husband in Marine uniform. The funeral had a strong military influence. Pallbearers, crisp young men looking very much like the portrait of Botello, represented an Oklahoma City Marine battalion. With the family was Cpl. Jake Hardy, Botello's buddy in the Corps and fellow soldier on his last mission, who sat with him as he died and escorted the body on every minute of its journey home from Africa. Among the mourners were other Marines, some in uniform, some out of military dress for many years. Funeral speaker Douglas Dry mentioned them. Many never knew Anthony Botello, he said, but they mourned the loss of a member of the Marine family to which they belonged. For Wilburton, several generations came to take leave of one of their youngest - and brightest. "What are you going to say about the all-American boy? " posed Superintendent of Schools Buddy Enis. Botello the student "became everything you wanted him to be. He was handsome, intelligent, athletic. ... An energy and enthusiasm danced around him. " His high school football coach spoke, and big, burly Mike Hainzinger cried as he did. "He wasn't 6-foot-2. He didn't weigh 240 pounds. He didn't run the 4.5-40. But he was special all that time. " An angry reaction came with news of Botello's death, said Hainzinger, "at the Africans ... at the government that sent him over there. " He's soothed, he said, by the reminder that for several football seasons, "we tried to make memories every Friday night. " A hero named Anthony is part of those memories now, he said. It took a Marine, though, to answer the painful questions the town, and particularly the family, struggled with this week. Dry, a Wilburton attorney, Botello family friend and Marine reservist, explained simply that Anthony Botello was doing what Marines are called to do, and that sometimes Marines die answering those calls. Marines "are not politicians who make policy and decide world issues. We are warriors. "We train year-round (to do) what we hope our leaders don't ask us to do. " But they always ask, Dry said, and they "always will. " "We are the only country in the world with the strength to help such ... a country in need. " He noted that the class of 1990 sent two graduates to the Marine Corps. One was Anthony Botello. "As long as Wilburton keeps producing fine young men as Anthony, the Marine Corps will keep coming along and taking them ... asking them to serve. "I shall never again put this uniform on without thinking about Anthony Botello and his family. " (NewsOK, Oklahoma City)∼Lcpl Anthony David Botello, USMC.
Graduated Wilburton OK. High School, 1990
Football team member
Killed 1993 Mogadishu, Somalia.
Member Charlie Co 1st Batt 7th Marines
Last Known Activity
MOGADISHU, Somalia - The death of a second Marine cast new doubt Tuesday on the United States' chances of rapidly withdrawing its combat troops from this lawless land. Lance Cpl. Anthony D. Botello, 21, of Wilberton, Okla., was the third American to die since U.S. forces came ashore Dec. 9 and his death underscored anew the huge task of pacifying Somalia. Botello was shot by a sniper while on a nighttime foot patrol near a stadium on Mogadishu's northside. The latest Marine casualty came only hours after U.S. army helicopter gunships and Belgian troops blasted with rocket and cannon fire a clan militia column heading for a rival militia's encampment near the southern port of Kismayu.
_________________
WILBURTON - Anthony David Botello left Wilburton behind to go around the world with the U.S. Marines. He must have meant to return, for he left behind the history of his life, a young bride and close family, and a town that claimed him as its own. But the Marines brought him home this week, and his town gathered to bury him. Lance Cpl. Botello was killed Jan. 25, the victim of a sniper's shot in Mogadishu, Somalia. Barely 21, he had joined the Marines to seek a better living than southeastern Oklahoma could offer. He was part of the U.S. effort to bring humanitarian relief to Somalia. Even though Botello was not part of an official combat operation, U.S. Rep. Bill Brewster's office said this week that the Pentagon will present his family a Purple Heart, along with other commendations. Wilburton schools were dismissed Wednesday, and local workers took time off from jobs to attend Botello's funeral in the high school auditorium. About 800 people filled the seats and stood against the wall. The end of the procession of cars to the cemetery, estimated by traffic officials at 21/2 miles long, did not arrive until the bugled "Taps" and the 21-gun salute sounded out. The packed auditorium was never silent. Constant coughing, throat-clearing and sniffing backed the funeral speakers - those uneasy noises people make when they are trying not to cry. Sharla Botello, who had dated Anthony since their early teens, married him when he graduated and is now a 20-year-old widow, cried before huge banks of flower arrangements and a photo of her solemn husband in Marine uniform. The funeral had a strong military influence. Pallbearers, crisp young men looking very much like the portrait of Botello, represented an Oklahoma City Marine battalion. With the family was Cpl. Jake Hardy, Botello's buddy in the Corps and fellow soldier on his last mission, who sat with him as he died and escorted the body on every minute of its journey home from Africa. Among the mourners were other Marines, some in uniform, some out of military dress for many years. Funeral speaker Douglas Dry mentioned them. Many never knew Anthony Botello, he said, but they mourned the loss of a member of the Marine family to which they belonged. For Wilburton, several generations came to take leave of one of their youngest - and brightest. "What are you going to say about the all-American boy? " posed Superintendent of Schools Buddy Enis. Botello the student "became everything you wanted him to be. He was handsome, intelligent, athletic. ... An energy and enthusiasm danced around him. " His high school football coach spoke, and big, burly Mike Hainzinger cried as he did. "He wasn't 6-foot-2. He didn't weigh 240 pounds. He didn't run the 4.5-40. But he was special all that time. " An angry reaction came with news of Botello's death, said Hainzinger, "at the Africans ... at the government that sent him over there. " He's soothed, he said, by the reminder that for several football seasons, "we tried to make memories every Friday night. " A hero named Anthony is part of those memories now, he said. It took a Marine, though, to answer the painful questions the town, and particularly the family, struggled with this week. Dry, a Wilburton attorney, Botello family friend and Marine reservist, explained simply that Anthony Botello was doing what Marines are called to do, and that sometimes Marines die answering those calls. Marines "are not politicians who make policy and decide world issues. We are warriors. "We train year-round (to do) what we hope our leaders don't ask us to do. " But they always ask, Dry said, and they "always will. " "We are the only country in the world with the strength to help such ... a country in need. " He noted that the class of 1990 sent two graduates to the Marine Corps. One was Anthony Botello. "As long as Wilburton keeps producing fine young men as Anthony, the Marine Corps will keep coming along and taking them ... asking them to serve. "I shall never again put this uniform on without thinking about Anthony Botello and his family. " (NewsOK, Oklahoma City)∼Lcpl Anthony David Botello, USMC.
Graduated Wilburton OK. High School, 1990
Football team member
Killed 1993 Mogadishu, Somalia.
Member Charlie Co 1st Batt 7th Marines
MOGADISHU, Somalia - The death of a second Marine cast new doubt Tuesday on the United States' chances of rapidly withdrawing its combat troops from this lawless land. Lance Cpl. Anthony D. Botello, 21, of Wilberton, Okla., was the third American to die since U.S. forces came ashore Dec. 9 and his death underscored anew the huge task of pacifying Somalia. Botello was shot by a sniper while on a nighttime foot patrol near a stadium on Mogadishu's northside. The latest Marine casualty came only hours after U.S. army helicopter gunships and Belgian troops blasted with rocket and cannon fire a clan militia column heading for a rival militia's encampment near the southern port of Kismayu.
_________________
WILBURTON - Anthony David Botello left Wilburton behind to go around the world with the U.S. Marines. He must have meant to return, for he left behind the history of his life, a young bride and close family, and a town that claimed him as its own. But the Marines brought him home this week, and his town gathered to bury him. Lance Cpl. Botello was killed Jan. 25, the victim of a sniper's shot in Mogadishu, Somalia. Barely 21, he had joined the Marines to seek a better living than southeastern Oklahoma could offer. He was part of the U.S. effort to bring humanitarian relief to Somalia. Even though Botello was not part of an official combat operation, U.S. Rep. Bill Brewster's office said this week that the Pentagon will present his family a Purple Heart, along with other commendations. Wilburton schools were dismissed Wednesday, and local workers took time off from jobs to attend Botello's funeral in the high school auditorium. About 800 people filled the seats and stood against the wall. The end of the procession of cars to the cemetery, estimated by traffic officials at 21/2 miles long, did not arrive until the bugled "Taps" and the 21-gun salute sounded out. The packed auditorium was never silent. Constant coughing, throat-clearing and sniffing backed the funeral speakers - those uneasy noises people make when they are trying not to cry. Sharla Botello, who had dated Anthony since their early teens, married him when he graduated and is now a 20-year-old widow, cried before huge banks of flower arrangements and a photo of her solemn husband in Marine uniform. The funeral had a strong military influence. Pallbearers, crisp young men looking very much like the portrait of Botello, represented an Oklahoma City Marine battalion. With the family was Cpl. Jake Hardy, Botello's buddy in the Corps and fellow soldier on his last mission, who sat with him as he died and escorted the body on every minute of its journey home from Africa. Among the mourners were other Marines, some in uniform, some out of military dress for many years. Funeral speaker Douglas Dry mentioned them. Many never knew Anthony Botello, he said, but they mourned the loss of a member of the Marine family to which they belonged. For Wilburton, several generations came to take leave of one of their youngest - and brightest. "What are you going to say about the all-American boy? " posed Superintendent of Schools Buddy Enis. Botello the student "became everything you wanted him to be. He was handsome, intelligent, athletic. ... An energy and enthusiasm danced around him. " His high school football coach spoke, and big, burly Mike Hainzinger cried as he did. "He wasn't 6-foot-2. He didn't weigh 240 pounds. He didn't run the 4.5-40. But he was special all that time. " An angry reaction came with news of Botello's death, said Hainzinger, "at the Africans ... at the government that sent him over there. " He's soothed, he said, by the reminder that for several football seasons, "we tried to make memories every Friday night. " A hero named Anthony is part of those memories now, he said. It took a Marine, though, to answer the painful questions the town, and particularly the family, struggled with this week. Dry, a Wilburton attorney, Botello family friend and Marine reservist, explained simply that Anthony Botello was doing what Marines are called to do, and that sometimes Marines die answering those calls. Marines "are not politicians who make policy and decide world issues. We are warriors. "We train year-round (to do) what we hope our leaders don't ask us to do. " But they always ask, Dry said, and they "always will. " "We are the only country in the world with the strength to help such ... a country in need. " He noted that the class of 1990 sent two graduates to the Marine Corps. One was Anthony Botello. "As long as Wilburton keeps producing fine young men as Anthony, the Marine Corps will keep coming along and taking them ... asking them to serve. "I shall never again put this uniform on without thinking about Anthony Botello and his family. " (NewsOK, Oklahoma City)∼Lcpl Anthony David Botello, USMC.
Graduated Wilburton OK. High School, 1990
Football team member
Killed 1993 Mogadishu, Somalia.
Member Charlie Co 1st Batt 7th Marines
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