PRINCETON, MN, US
U.S. Marine Corps
CPL, 2D RECON BN, (1ST MAR DIV, I MEF FWD), 2D MAR DIV, CAMP LEJEUNE, NC
08/23/2010, LANDSTUHL, GERMANY
Corporal Sean A. Osterman was on his second Afghanistan deployment and had been in-country for only a few weeks when he was wounded while leading his platoon in Helmand Province, Southern Afghanistan. Corporal Osterman died December 16, 2010 at Landstuhl Medical Center, Germany of wounds suffered on December 14. He was the son of a Marine Colonel.
Sean had planned to attend college, when he completed his service time. Sean graduated from Technical High School in St. Cloud, Minnesota in 2007. He joined the Marine Corps at age 17 on the Delayed Entry Program and went on active duty after graduation. Sean Osterman knew from a young age he was headed to the military, but took his time researching which branch might be best for him.
He chose the Marines, and it was not just because his father was a Colonel in the USMC. Osterman joined the Marine Corps in July 2007 and was promoted to corporal in January 2009.He was assigned to the 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C., and was part of what is known as a recon unit, which often conducts surveillance and intelligence gathering beyond the front lines.
Sean was born in La Crosse, Wisconsin, and lived near there until age 9. The family moved to Princeton, where he attended Cambridge Elementary School, Cambridge Middle School and graduated from Technical High School in St. Cloud in 2007.
Although he had found his time in the Marines rewarding, he had indicated to friends and relatives that he would be leaving the military after completing his service and planned to attend college. During basic training and afterward, if fellow Marines had questions about the service, he would often send his father letters seeking advice for his colleagues.
His awards include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan campaign medal, Global War on Terrorism service medal and the NATO International Security Assistance Force medal. His father, Marine Reserve Col. Anthony Osterman, was at one time responsible for training and equipping and manning the Afghan security forces, according to an earlier release from the U.S. military. He has since retired from the military.
His mother, Kelly Hugo, a guidance counselor at North Junior High School in St. Cloud, traveled to Germany to be with her son before he died and returned to Delaware with his body Monday night. Her Facebook wall chronicles the painful journey since learning that her son had been hurt. She explains his injuries and how his organs were to be harvested so that someone else may life and “some good” could come out of the loss of their son.
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