Tomorrow, Kielin Terrell Dunn will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.
Lance Corporal Dunn was 19 when he was killed in Helmand province.
LCpl. Dunn wanted to be a Marine since he was in fifth grade. His devotion to this dream led him to graduate early from high school. He graduated from Western Branch High School in Chesapeake after missing only one day of school in his entire educational career.
His path was short but it ran deep.
As an honor roll student, Dunn received many academic awards including Golden Pyramid "Best Academic Practice" and National Achievers Society Award from the San Diego Urban League.
Dunn was raised in a military family. His mother, Terri Campbell, served in the Army as a vehicle mechanic. His stepfather, Navy Senior Chief Gary Campbell, serves on a frigate. His stepfather described the decision to have Dunn join the Marines as "difficult" but they allowed it because "we support what our children do." His stepfather explained the reason Dunn was eager to join the Marines and serve on the front lines:
He felt for the guys out there, and he wanted to be with them.
This sense of involvement, and active support is a recurring theme throughout this young man's life. In 2008, Dunn spent the summer living at the Seton Youth Shelters in Virginia Beach. During that time, he mentored young people while taking his final high school classes. David Mount, the shelter's director of street outreach programs, described Dunn as "a role model to the children and teens at the shelter."
"He was an inspiration to the residents here," he said. "He inspired them and gave them hope that they could actually overcome their life challenges."
Mount described Dunn as intelligent, honest, driven and focused.
"He was a good person, and he was a straight arrow," he said. "That's a reflection of his family."
That recollection is consistent with the comments left in the Guest Book memorializing young Mr. Dunn.
Just another memory of Kielin...He was such a kind hearted young man, he would while stationed as a Marine at Camp LeJeune would come by my house often (I would pick him up at his barracks on the base because he did not have a car yet) to help me by working on my computer, hooking up my stereo, etc....He was a wiz with computers and electronics, he was soooo smart. He would not want to accept payment for his help but only a Thank You...
Dunn served in the 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force. A week before his death, some of his platoonmates had been killed by an IED. This upset him for obvious reasons. When Dunn last spoke with his mother on the phone, he told her he missed her and wanted to come home but
He had to be strong for his other Marines.
When I consider how much promise this young man had and the potential we have lost with his death, I recall with profound sadness this line from George Bernard Shaw:
"I want to be all used up when I die."
Cruel fate impoverished all of us when it stole that modest request from this noble young man.
Update from comments
Kielin's mother gets to say the last word. (h/t Scarce)