"There was never a doubt in his mind that he was there for the right reasons," says Brian St. Germain's uncle and godfather, Terence Adamo.

01:38 AM EDT on Wednesday, April 5, 2006

BY MARK ARSENAULT
Journal Staff Writer

WEST WARWICK -- In a truck crash in Iraq that killed at least five Marines on Sunday, Rhode Island lost a 22-year-old former all-star runner driven to excellence by mental toughness and a thirst for challenge.

Cpl. Brian St. Germain, a 2001 graduate of West Warwick High School in his second tour of duty in Iraq, was among the Marines killed when a flash flood toppled their 7-ton truck on a logistics convoy in the Anbar Province in western Iraq, according to his family, which learned of his death on Sunday night. Two Marines and a sailor were missing after the crash; another Marine was injured, according to news agency reports.

Photo courtesy of family

Cpl. Brian St. Germain of West Warwick died Sunday in Iraq.

St. Germain, an all-state runner in the hurdles and an honor roll student in high school, studied briefly at the University of Rhode Island after graduation, then left school to join the Marines in May 2002, according to his uncle and godfather, Terence Adamo.

For St. Germain, no other branch of the military would do: he was determined to be a United States Marine.

"He wanted," Adamo said, "to be challenged."

Standing on the porch of St. Germain's home in West Warwick yesterday, with family gathered inside, Adamo said the family has not heard any more details about the crash than were reported in the media. "Not hostile action," Adamo said, grimly. "Just a terrible accident." A raw wind whipped the American flag and the Marine Corps flag flying side-by-side at the house. "I think it's really going to hit us" soon, Adamo said. "They gave us a three-to-six-day window when he would arrive in the States. That's going to be the reality of it."

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St. Germain is the 14th solider from Rhode Island to die in the Iraq war, according to the Rhode Island National Guard, which has maintained the statistics. The Marine Corps sent two officers to St. Germain's home on Sunday night to notify the family.

St. Germain was about 5-foot-11, with a slim runner's build. "A hundred-thirty pounds soaking wet," Adamo said. He was talkative, a sports and truck enthusiast who wrote about his love of trucks and posted links to pictures of his 2005 Dodge pickup on the j-body.org Web site. Adamo yesterday gestured to St. Germain's white pickup in the driveway. "That was his baby," he said. "He had a lot of plans for that truck."

Adamo had been surprised when his godson joined the Marines. The family was concerned he could end up in a war zone. "It was after September 11, so the potential was there, but there again we had to support his decision," Adamo said. In 2004, Adamo visited Camp Pendleton, Calif., where St. Germain was stationed and working in the Marines as a diesel engine mechanic. "He liked it," Adamo said, adding with a sad smile, "He apparently didn't like it when they broke everything on him, because he had to fix it."

St. Germain was attached to the 1st Marine Logistics Group, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, according to Governor Carcieri's office.

The governor yesterday ordered state flags lowered to half-staff. "Today we honor the sacrifice of another brave Rhode Islander who died serving his country," Carcieri said in a statement. "Corporal St. Germain, along with every man and woman in America's armed forces, deserves our respect and gratitude for his deep commitment to our nation."

After volunteering for his first tour in the desert, St. Germain was ordered back to Iraq in February, Adamo said. His initial tour was for about six months. He was unsure yesterday of the dates of his nephew's first tour in the Middle East.

St. Germain confided in his uncle after his first tour that he had volunteered to ride on a number of convoys, among the most dangerous duty for the American military in Iraq. "I asked him why he did that, why he volunteered," Adamo said. "He told me it was because many of the guys he was serving with had wives and children." St. Germain was single; each time he volunteered for the dangerous duty, he spared some parent the risk.

After his first tour, St. Germain did not speak much of what he saw in Iraq, his uncle said. While in the Middle East, he called home about once a week. He last spoke to his mother seven days before he was killed, he said. "There was never a doubt in his mind that he was there for the right reasons."

St. Germain enjoyed four-wheeling in his truck, and practicing the martial arts he learned in the Marines. He wanted to become a martial arts instructor. He enjoyed the military, and had talked about reenlisting for another four years. "The service was probably going to be his life," Adamo said. "He knew what he was getting himself into." When St. Germain had called Adamo from the desert, they often spoke about trucks and sports. St. Germain, a Boston Red Sox fan, liked to needle his godfather for cheering for the New York Yankees.

Though he finished his high school career as an excellent hurdler, he did not begin as a star. "Track wasn't something that came easy to him," he said. "He didn't start off as a good athlete, he worked hard."

Bill Izzi, head of the guidance department at West Warwick High, coached St. Germain in track. "He took all honors courses, our most rigorous curriculum," he said. "He worked hard to become one of the best hurdlers in Rhode Island his junior and senior years. He was dedicated toward whatever he did."

The school observed a moment of silence yesterday for St. Germain, though he graduated five years ago, more than a generation for a four-year high school, and not many of today's students knew him well, he said.

On his j-body Web page, St. Germain had typed his favorite quote, from U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Jay R. Stark: "Marines I see as two breeds, Rottweilers or Dobermans, because Marines come in two varieties, big and mean, or skinny and mean. They're aggressive on the attack and tenacious on defense. They've got really short hair and they always go for the throat."

On the family porch yesterday, Adamo cradled his nephew's photo in his hand. The picture was a traditional military portrait with an American flag in the background. St. Germain, in a stately dress uniform, stared out hard from the picture, expressionless. "Typical Marine," Adamo said.

With staff reports from projo.com staff writer Steve Peoples

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