GRAYSLAKE, IL, USA U.S. Marines LCPL, WPNS CO, 1ST BN, 3D MAR (31ST MEU, 1ST MAR DIV), 3D MAR DIV, KANEOHE BAY HIT, IRAQ 02/02/2005
Family, friends and fellow Marines will tell you that Sean can be summed up in one word; HEART. It is in the spirit of that heart and commitment to others that this foundation is establishing a scholarship fund for Warren Township High School. Sean was a 2003 graduate of Warren Township High School, Grayslake, Illinois.
Sean excelled at sports – especially football – in high school. He was not the biggest or best athlete but everyone recognized early on that his game was driven to another level by his heart and approach to the game. If there was ever an athlete who “left it all on the field” every play, every game, it was Sean.
Sean was a much loved, highly regarded and respected Marine with the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment. Sean was killed in action on February 2, 2005 in Al Anbar province, Iraq, when his unit came under hostile fire near Fallujah.
Sean enlisted in the Marine Corps in March of 2003 just months after graduating from Warren Township High School. Sean wanted to serve his country and make a difference in Iraq not only to advance the cause of freedom but also to help people understand that while differences separate us culturally, religiously and politically, we are all the same at heart.
Sean’s Dad, Dan Maher of unincorporated Warren Township near Grayslake and Gurnee, Illinois established a foundation in his son’s name to finance an annual foundation scholarship. The area student-athlete who is selected for the $2,500 scholarship should exhibit traits similar to Sean’s: dedication, commitment and lots of heart. “It’s in honor of Sean and everything he represented, everything he did,” Dan Maher said of his son. It was Sean’s dream to return from Iraq and go to college. He was just days from coming home when he was killed. The foundation will provide that focus on education that is remains tied to Sean’s personality and memory.
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