Clifford Collinsworth
Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps
January 22, 1986 – October 21, 2006
Age – 20
Chelsea, MI
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment (1-1 AD, I MEF FWD), 2nd Marine Division, Camp Lejeune, NC
Killed in Ramadi Iraq while on patrol during his second deployment
Lance Corporal Cliff Collinsworth was so eager to be a Marine two years ago that he left for boot camp just days after graduating from Chelsea High School. Collinsworth wrestled and played football. He took meticulous care of his 2004 forest-green Chevrolet Blazer.
Kerry Kargel, Chelsea High’s wrestling coach, also worked with the middle-school football team and met Collinsworth as a young player. He always wanted to get out there and play, Kargel said. Once he reached high school, he joined the wrestling team in hopes of improving his football. “He would always ask me, ‘Will it make me tougher, coach, will it make me tougher?’” he said.
The 20-year-old high-honors graduate was killed during his second tour of duty in Iraq when a roadside bomb exploded near the Humvee he was riding in near
Collinsworth was an eager Marine who loved his job. He would bound around and shout “hoo-rah,” the military rallying cry for strength, confidence and morale, or “Semper Fi,” the Marine Corps motto that means “always faithful” in Latin.
He wanted to be a Marine for a long time, and it was a great thing for him. He wanted to serve his country, then go to college to be a history teacher.
“He was a hard worker, he had a great work ethic,” Collingsworth’s sister Melissa said. “He was devoted, he took everything seriously. He was proud of himself, his fellow Marines and his country. He died a very honorable death. He gave them all he could give them.”