Marine Corporal Nicholas James Dieruf, USMC, was a 21-year-old Kentucky native who gave his life in service to our nation during Operation Iraqi Freedom. A graduate of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Lexington, he joined the Marine Corps in 2000 and served with the 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, based at Camp Pendleton, California.
After returning from his first deployment to Iraq, Nich came home in January 2004 to marry his wife, Emily. Just weeks later, he returned overseas with his fellow Marines.
On April 8, 2004, while participating in combat operations in Iraq’s Al Anbar Province, Corporal Dieruf was killed by enemy fire when insurgents attacked his unit during a nighttime mission near Husaybah. He became the first service member from the Lexington area to lose his life in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Friends, family, fellow Marines, and community members remember Nich as an energetic, cheerful young man, devoted to his faith, family, and country.
