Pfc. Steven P. Stevens II, 23, was deployed to Afghanistan a little more than a week before his infant son was born. Now Stevens' grandmother, Dorothy Atkins, tells the Detroit Free Press how hurt the family is that he'll never hold his child:
“I’m sorry that he never got a chance to see his son. I wish he could have had that blessing.”
The Department of Defense reports Stevens was killed June 22 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province. He was assigned to 1st Combat Engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Pendleton.
Stevens grew up in Detroit and attended college for two years at Florida A&M before he enlisted in the Marines. His wife, Monique, and son still live in Florida, according to Detroit television station WXYZ-TV.
