Marine made ‘the ultimate sacrifice’
By Lisa Roose-Church, DAILY PRESS & ARGUS

Livingston Daily Press & Argus (Livingston County, MI)
October 26, 2006

Livingston County sheriff’s Deputy Ken Taylor is
remembering the life of his second cousin, Lance Cpl.
Nicholas J. Manoukian.

Manoukian, 22, of Lathrup Village, was among the four
Marines based at Camp Lejeune who died Saturday during
combat in Anbar province, Iraq.

He was killed when a roadside bomb hit his Humvee near
Ramadi.

"He was young, but he did what he wanted to do,"
Taylor said. "He was not afraid to serve his country.
That was his calling."

The Defense Department identified the other Marines
killed as Lance Cpl. Clifford R. Collinsworth, 20, of
Chelsea; Lance Cpl. Nathan R. Elrod, 20, of Salisbury,
N.C.; and Cpl. Joshua C. Watkins, 25, of Jacksonville,
Fla.

Collinsworth, Manoukian and Elrod were members of the
1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment of the 2nd Marine
Division. Watkins was a member of the division’s 2nd
Tank Battalion.

Taylor, former school resource officer for the Howell
Police Department, said Manoukian was a good kid who
enjoyed sports, in particular soccer and hockey.

Taylor said Manoukian was a man not afraid to serve
his country.

"He always wanted to be part of a brotherhood," Taylor
said. "He liked the Marines because it’s a close-knit
family."

Manoukian was born in Westland, attended Southfield
Christian School and Royal Oak Shrine High School and
graduated from Royal Oak Kimball High School in 2003.

He studied art at Oakland University and joined the
Marines in June 2004. He first was deployed to Iraq in
2005 and returned to Iraq in October for a second tour
of duty, Taylor said.

Manoukian married his longtime girlfriend, Danielle,
at the National Shrine of the Little Flower Catholic
Church in Royal Oak on July 8.

"We share the same wedding anniversary," Taylor noted.
"He will be sorely missed. He died doing what he
believed in. He did what he could do to make the world
a safer place.

"He gave his life; the ultimate sacrifice," the deputy
said.

Manoukian also is survived by his mother, Mary
Manoukian Calhoun; stepfather, Gary Calhoun; and
stepson, Nico Mullen.

Collinsworth was eager to join the Marines, leaving
for boot camp days after graduating from Chelsea High
School two years ago.

"He wanted to be a Marine for a long time, and it was
a great thing for him," Collinsworth’s 22-year-old
sister, Melissa Collinsworth, said. She said he hoped
to attend college and teach history.

Contact Lisa Roose-Church at (517) 552-2846 or at
lrchurch@gannett.com.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress