Family members say Camp Pendleton Marine Lance Cpl. Ramon T. Kaipat, 22, was one month away from leaving the service to attend college, when he was killed in Afghanistan on April 11.
According to the Department of Defense, Kaipat died while conducting combat operations in Helmand province.
He was assigned to the 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Pendleton.
Kaipat was born in Saipan in 1989, and his family moved to Tacoma, Washington in 2004. It was at the family home in Tacoma where Marines broke the news to loved ones that Ramon Kaipat had been killed in action.
Ramon's brother, Pedro Jr., told the Saipan Tribune:
“I couldn't accept it, I couldn't believe it. Just a couple of days before that, we were talking on the phone and everything was okay. He sounded happy. He said he was fine. He sounded a lot better than his previous call when he sounded tired. He was even joking on the phone when I last talked to him.”
In addition to younger brother Pedro Jr., Ramon Kaipat leaves behind an older sister, Pearllita, mother Sinforosa, and father Pedro Sr.
Seattle television station KIRO-TV spoke with Lance Cpl. Kaipat's family about what the young Marine wanted for his future. Click here to watch.
