Local Marine mourned

‘Class clown’ had a ‘great heart,’ teacher recalls

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Jeffery S. Blanton, killed by enemy gunfire on the front lines in Iraq on Sunday, was remembered this week as a student who once a “class clown,” but returned after joining the military to encourage students to finish school and mind their teachers.

Glenna With, an English teacher at East Coweta, remembered it was often difficult to correct Blanton because of his sense of humor and the twinkle in his eye when he would cut up, both in and out of class.

She said he was “a pistol.”

“But he had a great heart,” With said. “Once you got Jeff on your side, he’d do anything for you, once you connected with him.”

Blanton, a Coweta native, was killed Sunday after being attacked during a sweep of buildings in Al Anbar Province. His death came just two days after recovering from another wound and being cleared to return to combat.

A full military funeral is planned, but arrangements are still pending, said Fayette County Coronor C.J. Mowell.

Blanton’s family has said they want Mowell’s Funeral Home to handled the arrangements, he said, but that decision ultimately rests with Blanton’s wife, Amber Boyd, an Army paralegal stationed in Afgahnistan.

The two wed on a Hawaii beach in February. She’ll be meeting many of Blanton’s familiy for the first time when she comes to Georgia for the funeral.

“The family here in Coweta County wishes that we handle the funeral, but she is the one who makes the ultimate decision,” Mowell said.

After his parents seperated in his senior year, Blanton moved to Cobb County to live with his mother and graduated from Marietta High School.

Blanton enlisted in the Marine Corps in March 2002 and attended the School of Infantry in Camp Lejeune, N.C. from June until November 2002 where he trained to become an anti-tank assaultman, officials said.

At the time of his death, Blanton was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force based in Hawaii, military officials said. He traveled with his unit to the Middle East this August in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The Department of Defense lists Fayetteville as Blanton’s “hometown of record,” which means that’s what he put on his enlistment records, a spokesman for the Marine Corps said. No other explanation was given.

But Blanton does have Fayette ties with family members, it was reported.

With got to know Blanton through his participation in the Vocational Opportunities Club of America and the Project Success program at ECHS, she said. Blanton worked hard as a member of the club’s math team, which won first place at district competition and then went to state competition on a three-day trip to St. Simons Island, With said.

The math team was taught by ECHS teacher Lynn Skinner, With noted.

“They worked with Mrs. Skinner diligently,” With said. The win at district competition allowed them to taste success, she added.

“He saw the possibilities,” she added.

With got the news of Blanton’s death Monday, and she went home and began looking through her photos, finding a shot of a jubilant Blanton hoisting the VOCA math team’s district trophy.

“It was not an easy day,” With said.

Blanton stayed in contact after graduating high school and even after enlisting with the Marine Corps, With said. He would call sometimes and last year With even got a Christmas card from her former student.

The speaking engagement with one of With’s English classes was impromptu as Blanton came by to visit her one day at school almost two years ago, dressed in his Marine fatigues, she said. Students began asking questions about who he was, With introduced Blanton, and next thing she knew, he was giving them advice.

“He told them it was important to stay in school and listen to your teachers, and even if you don’t like them you have to do what they say,” With fondly recalled. It was a “great lesson” for the class, she noted.

After working his first job out of high school, Blanton sought out a military career to get some training, With said. She helped tutor him for the Marine Corps entrance exam, which he passed in Fall of 2002, she said.

“He decided he needed some sort of training to be a successful adult,” With said.

With also lauded Blanton for finishing his high school degree at Marietta High, another feather in his cap, With said.

“So many kids at that point wouldn’t have, but he did,” With said.

The Project Success program, now defunct, was designed to help at-risk students who had difficulty with standardized tests, reading, math, self-esteem or family issues, With noted.

Blanton is survived by his wife and parents, officials said. His awards include the National Defense Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon; he is also recommended to receive the Purple Heart, a special honor for those wounded in combat.


		Friday, Dec. 17, 2004