Hero Card 171, Card Pack 15
Photo credit: U.S. Marine Corps (digitally restored), used with family permission
Hometown: Lenoir City, TN
Branch: U.S. Marine Corps
Unit: 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
Military Honors: Purple Heart
Date of Sacrifice: December 27, 2006 - KIA near Habbaniyah, Al Anbar province, Iraq
Age: 24
Conflict: Iraq War, 2003-2011
William Koprince Jr. was born on September 16, 1982, in Southgate, Michigan, to parents Bernice and William Koprince. The family, including sister Morgan, referred to the older William as “Bill,” the younger “Billy.”
When Billy was 10 years old the family moved to Lenoir City, Tennessee, southeast of Knoxville, in June of 1991. Billy was a member of New Life Church of the Nazarene in nearby Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and graduated from Lenoir City High School in the spring of 2001.
Against his parents’ wishes, Koprince enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in September 2003. His father told the Associated Press, “I tried to convince him to go across the hallway to the Air Force recruiter. But he wanted to be the best. He wanted to be a Marine.”
Koprince completed basic training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Paris Island (South Carolina). His first deployment was to Djibouti, Africa—a strategically important passage between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and a gateway for ships traveling between the Mediterranean Sea and Indian Ocean.
His first tour of duty in Iraq began in March 2005, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was assigned to help guard the Iraqi border with Syria along the Euphrates River. Koprince returned to the U.S. in October 2005.
In the July of 2006, Koprince was deployed again to Iraq and assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina.
Lance Corporal Koprince’s mother recalls that her son at first wanted to make a career of serving in the Marines, but changed his mind and was making plans to attend college. He talked about studying landscaping and was looking forward to returning to the U.S. in February when his tour was completed.
Koprince’s father said that Billy’s phone calls home were typically quite short. “When he called, he knew there were guys with wives and kids who were waiting for the phone. He wanted them to be able to talk to their families.”
Two days after Christmas 2006, on December 27, LCpl. Koprince was on foot patrol as part of a joint mission with the Iraqi Army, to round up insurgents near Habbaniyah in Al Anbar province. He was killed by a roadside bomb just five weeks short of completing his service and returning home, at the age of 24.
LCpl. William“Billy” C. Koprince was laid to rest near his hometown of Lenoir City, Tennessee. His father said, “He did his best. That’s what he chose. That’s what he wanted to do.”
Sources
Details submitted by Mrs. Bernice Koprince, LCpl. Koprince’s Gold Star Mother
Johnson City Press, Dec. 29, 2006: Marine from Tennessee killed in Al Anbar province of Iraq
The University of Tennessee Knoxville News: Gold Star Moms: History Department Moms Share Pain of Losing Sons in War
The Leaf-Chronicle, Dec. 29, 2006: Tennessee Marine dies in Iraq
East Tennessee Veterans Memorial Association: William C. Koprince Jr.
The National Gold Star Family Registry: LCPL William Craig Koprince Jr.
Washington Post, Faced of the Fallen: Lance Cpl. William C. Koprince Jr.
Military Times—Honor the Fallen: Marine Lance Cpl. William C. Koprince Jr.
Burial Site: Find a Grave
