Marine’s family
had final isle trip

The Kaneohe man died Sunday
in Iraq in a Humvee accident

Lance Cpl. Richard P. Slocum and Kaneohe Bay's 1st Battalion shipped out to Okinawa for what was supposed to be a normal seven-month deployment. Instead, the unit's members were flagged as Iraq replacements.

Slocum, 19, arrived in the Middle East last month, just over a year after graduating from high school. He died Sunday in Iraq after a Humvee accident, which is under investigation.

The Valencia, Calif., native enlisted in the Marine Corps in August 2003, and was sent to the islands in February. He is the first Kaneohe-based Marine to die in Iraq since the war began, officials said.

"He died for his country," his father, Robert Sr., said. "He was doing something that he wanted to do."

The Marine Corps told Slocum's parents that the Humvee the soldier was driving while on patrol Sunday overturned near Abu Ghraib when he was going around barricades. The Department of Defense has labeled Slocum's death a noncombat accident.

Family members said Slocum was stationed in the islands because he broke his foot during training, which delayed his Marine graduation a week.

His class, meanwhile, was deployed to Iraq.

Slocum's stay in Hawaii allowed for a "fantastic" family vacation in April, said his father. And during the trip, Slocum and his brother were able to just "talk about our lives," brother Robert Slocum Jr. said.

"We went snorkeling," he said. "We traveled the whole island. ... We spent some good family time up there."

"He liked what he was doing out there," Robert Slocum Jr. said. "He was really up about things."

The Marine last called family on Wednesday from Iraq -- his second call home from the country -- and told his parents that "things were pretty hairy, but he was coming home," his brother said.

"He was worried," Robert Slocum Jr. said. "I don't think he really knew what this meant."

Robert Slocum Sr. said his son joined the Marines because he was looking "to get some direction in his life."

"He was pretty athletic and tough on the outside, but very soft on the inside," he said. "He just thought that the Marines would be a good fit for him."

Slocum's brother said the family home in Valencia has been full of the Marine's friends since news of his death got out.

"People have been coming by all day," Robert Slocum, Jr. said. "He had a lot of friends."

Slocum's death brings the toll of those with Hawaii ties who have been killed in either Iraq, Kuwait or Afghanistan since March 2003 to 25. One of them was a civilian.

Slocum is survived by parents Robert and Kay; sister Kim; and brother Robert. Services are pending.