Craig N. Watson
Lance Corporal, United States Marine Corps
March 3, 1984 – December 1, 2005
Age – 21
Union City, MI
Operation Iraqi Freedom
2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Twentynine Palms, CA
Killed by an improvised explosive device while conducting combat operations against enemy forces in Fallujah, Iraq
Craig was born in Great Bend, Kansas, the son of Shirley Watson and Jay D. Watson. He had lived in the Union City, Michigan, area most of his life. He was a 2003 graduate of Union City where he made All Conference in Football and Wrestling. He participated in Track, mock elections in senior high and had a part in the play Grease. He loved to hunt, fish and ride horses. His military service as a U.S. Marine began with boot camp June 23, 2003, he graduated MCRD September 19, 2005 and continued with Infantry training at Camp Pendleton, CA. LCPL Watson tours in Iraq and went by a nickname of Oompa.
When Shirley Watson packed Christmas gifts last week for her son, she kept things simple. “Just some socks and underwear and some puzzle books,” Shirley Watson said. “They have to carry everything around.” She mailed the gifts to Iraq, where her 21-year-old son was serving a second tour of duty before a scheduled homecoming in January. Military officers informed her at 2 a.m. Friday, that her son was one of 10 Marines killed Thursday, Dec. 1, 2005, by a roadside bomb near Fallujah. Eleven other Marines were wounded. She described her son as a jokester and a protector who decided to join the Marines after September 11 when he was attending Union City High School.
He joined the delayed enlistment program and shipped out three weeks after graduating in June 2003. “He felt he needed to help,” she said. “He totally believed in what he was doing over there. He didn’t feel the men should be pulled out yet because they weren’t finished.”
Watson played on the football and wrestling teams at Union City. He had twin brothers, Brad and Kevin, who also attended the school. Although he weighed only about 190 pounds, Watson wrestled in the heavyweight division and often went against opponents 30 to 40 pounds heavier than him. He had to drink a lot of water so he could make weight. He was a team player. He sacrificed for the team and also for his country. He could be prankster. He grinned a lot. And if he got in trouble, he’d take it pretty good. He’d say, ”Yeah, I did that. I’m sorry.”
“He was my hero – a practical joker, a protector. He could be ornery at times, but he smiled a lot too,” said his mother, Shirley Watson. He was a very sweet boy. But he’d wrestle kids 100 pounds more than him because he was all heart and he was so team-oriented,” said Michele Kaniewski, a school library clerk. His brother Brad, 20, recalled Watson playing defensive tackle to his linebacker on the football team. In sports and in his military service, Brad said, his older brother never shrank from a challenge. “I actually look up to him for having the courage to do stuff.”
He was remembered by a fellow Marine as follows:
“Craig was one of the best Marines I’ve known. He was always lighthearted and happy no matter what he was asked to do. I’m sorry there’s not more like him. To Craig: You are my Brother and I will see you soon”
Sgt. David OMalia of Camp Lejeune, NC