Hometown: Green Bay, WI
Branch: U.S. Marine Corps
Unit: 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company, 2nd Platoon, II Marine Expeditionary Force
Military Honors: Bronze Star with Combat V, Purple Heart
Date of Sacrifice: November 23, 2004 - KIA in Lutifiyah, Iraq
Age: 24
Conflict: Iraq War, 2003-2011

Ben Edinger graduated from Green Bay (Wisconsin) West High School in 1999. After studying for a year at the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh, he surprised his family and joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 2000.

Edinger completed basic training and was first assigned to the Marines’ 3rd Force Service Support Group, where he was a small-computer systems specialist with the Headquarters and Service Battalion.

Not satisfied with his desk assignment, Edinger later volunteered for combat duty with a highly specialized reconnaissance unit. During his four-year Marine Corps career, he’d take part in 61 combat missions.

In a 2001 interview with Stars and Stripes, Edinger said he was “real proud wearing the nameplate ‘U.S. Marines.’”

Edinger’s mother, Rose Scannell, recalls, “He always was ready for any challenge that was brought to him. He enjoyed his work from the technical standpoint working with computers, but he enjoyed the combat training more than anything, and that is where he wanted to be. He shared his first lesson of field combat with me: never eat bugs bigger than your fist, and you’ll be fine.”

In his first deployment in March of 2003, Edinger was part of the initial invasion for Operation Iraqi Freedom. At the end of his deployment, Edinger trained in the U.S. before deploying to Iraq a second time with the 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company, 2nd Platoon, II Marine Expeditionary Force.

Scheduled to be discharged from the Marines early in 2005, Sgt. Edinger told relatives he planned to study veterinary medicine at the University of Wisconsin after his military service. A rugby player while in high school, Edinger had hoped to try out for the Badger football program as a walk-on.

Sgt. Edinger’s courage in battle was recognized with a Bronze Star Medal with a Combat V designation. His citation reads, in part:

Sergeant Edinger demonstrated exceptional personal courage over the course of 61 combat missions, which included 41 direct-action precision raids. He acquitted himself with coolness and clarity under fire in each engagement. On 11 October, during a combined direct-action raid with Hillah SWAT in Lutifiyah located in the Northern Babil Province, Sergeant Edinger’s team was attacked with an improvised explosive device along alternate supply route Jackson, and then immediately engaged with small arms fire from an adjacent palm grove. He provided accurate suppressive fires on the enemy, allowing the wounded to receive medical care, and a sweep conducted which fatally wounded the triggerman and observer. This is just one example of his overall performance throughout this period as he served as an example for seniors and subordinates to emulate from. By his zealous initiative, courageous actions and exceptional dedication to duty Sergeant Edinger reflected great credit upon himself and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.

On November 14, 2004, just a few months before completing his four years of service, Sgt. Edinger was wounded by shrapnel from an enemy roadside bomb. An eyewitness recounts Edinger’s actions on that day:

On 14 November, during a mission to extract from an Observation Post (OP), Sergeant Edinger’s team was again engaged by an IED [Improvised Explosive Device] ambush. Although mortally wounded, Sergeant Edinger continued to man his gun, fighting for air, until he was relieved of it in order to receive medical attention. Sergeant Edinger was an inspiration to those around him with his physical courage, buoyant fighting spirit, and ‘never quit’ attitude.

Critically wounded, Sgt. Edinger was evacuated to a hospital in Baghdad and after three days moved to a hospital in Landstuhl, Germany. After three more days, he was flown to National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

Following three surgeries, doctors had some hope that Sgt. Edinger would recover from his multiple shrapnel wounds. While at Bethesda, Edinger’s family was able to visit the wounded Marine, who communicated by pointing at letters on a chart.

His condition improved enough that he was moved out of intensive care. But he suddenly took a turn for the worse and succumbed to his injuries on November 23, 2004—nine days after the attack in Iraq. Sergeant Benjamin Charles Edinger was 24 years old.

In Sgt. Edinger’s memory, the Brian Laviolette Scholarship Foundation has established an award named the “Benjamin Edinger Scholarship of Honor”—recognizing high school seniors who have plans to enlist in the military or pursue a career in public safety or community service.

Sources
Details and card photo submitted by Ms. Rosanna Scannell—Sgt. Edinger’s Gold Star Mother.
Military Times—Honor the Fallen: Marine Sgt. Benjamin C. Edinger
The Post-Crescent (Appleton, WI), Nov. 26, 2004: Marine died ‘doing what he wanted to do’
Together We Served: Edinger, Benjamin Charles, Sgt
The Highground Veterans Memorial Park: Benjamin C Edinger
The Compass, Catholic Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin: Service remembers Marine killed in war in Iraq
The Brian LaViolette Scholarship Foundation: Benjamin Edinger Scholarship of Honor
Burial Site: Find a Grave

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