LUXEMBURG, WI, USA U.S. Marines SGT, K CO, 3D BN, 2D MAR, (RCT-5, I MEF FWD), 2D MAR DIV, CAMP LEJEUNE, NC TAQADDUM, IRAQ 10/27/2006
Steve Metzler hired Luke J. Zimmerman to work in the back of his wife’s restaurant, but soon moved him to the front. He started out as a dishwasher, but we found out what a great people person he was and how much everyone liked him, so we put him out front as a cashier, said Metzler.
Zimmerman, 24, of Luxemburg, Wis., was killed during combat Oct. 27 in Anbar province. He was a 2000 high school graduate and was assigned to Camp Lejeune.
As long as I’ve known him, his dream was to be a Marine, said Metzler’s son, Troy, adding that Zimmerman had served in Hawaii, Japan and Austria before Iraq.
In high school, Zimmerman was a wrestler, and coach Bob Berceau said he was a hard worker. Just a go-getter, he always had a lot of fire in him, he said.
During boot camp, Zimmerman often finished at the front of the pack during training runs. Zimmerman couldn’t attend Troy Metzler’s wedding so he wrote his friend a letter telling him how much their friendship meant to him. It was read at Metzler’s Aug. 5 nuptials.
That was all the gift that I needed, said Metzler.
Zimmerman is survived by his parents, Claire and Richard Dombrowski.