What's inspirational to me about Lance Corporal Hunt's sacrifice is what he did in order to become United States Marine.

Justin, of Wildomar, CA, was a star athlete in high school, winning trophies in wrestling, baseball and football. According to Justin's twin brother, Jason, he always wanted to be a Marine. But when he went to visit Marine recruiters in 2002 he was so big they didn't have a scale that would weigh him. Their scales only went to 350 lbs. and they estimated that Justin weighed 390. After giving up some of his favorite foods and lots of early morning runs, often accompanied by his recruiter, Justin dropped to 207 lbs, just under his maximum allowable weight. At boot camp he lost another 30 lbs and began to talk about becoming a Drill Instructor. While at Camp Lejeune he met Kerry Murphy and the couple made plans to meet each other's families.

Justin also dreamed of going to college and becoming an FBI agent. "I want everybody to know what a great guy he was," Justin's mother, Debbie, says, "He loved being on a team, fighting for a goal." Justin's older brother, Robert, is in the US Navy deployed to the Middle East and will accompany his brother home.

¶ Monday, July 12, 2004