Hawaii’s
war toll mounts

An Ewa Beach mother of
a son lost to war had already
bought his Christmas gifts

Gina Ellis-Williams said she has not slept since receiving the words every mother dreads: Her son, Lance Cpl. Blake Magaoay, was killed in Iraq.

Lance Cpl. Blake Magaoay

"I just couldn't believe it," said Ellis-Williams as tears rolled down from her reddened eyes at her Ewa Beach home. "It's unfortunate that he was taken away from me."

Today, a moment of silence will be held before classes begin at Pearl City High School to honor Magaoay, 20, an alumnus of the school, said Principal Gerald Suyama.

Magaoay died Monday in Fallujah, Iraq, becoming the 47th soldier with Hawaii ties to die in the terror war in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait.

Tony Magaoay said his son had been working with Marines from Kaneohe and was "killed in a gunbattle near midnight in Fallujah."

Magaoay was born on Oahu, attended intermediate school on Lanai and entered Pearl City High as a sophomore and graduated from there in June 2002.

Magaoay played football for two years while attending Pearl City High and loved being a Marine.

"But his No. 1 love was surfing," said his father, Tony. "When he was home last summer, as soon as he got home, he grabbed his board and headed to the North Shore."

Magaoay joined the Marine Corps a few months after graduation.

He pulled his first combat tour in Iraq nearly a year and half ago with a Camp Pendleton unit from Southern California.

Ellis-Williams said her son spent three to four months in Iraq during his second tour and was expected to return in February. They talked at least once a month.

Just three weeks ago, he tried to call his father to tell him he had been wounded but that he was OK.

The elder Magaoay said his son was only able to get hold of an uncle. He told him the shrapnel wound in his leg was not serious and that he was being sent back to his unit.

"He's not a follower; he's a leader," said Ellis-Williams. She last spoke to her son while he was in the hospital a few weeks ago.

Last week, Ellis-Williams went Christmas shopping for her son and bought pants, shoe polish and other gifts and items he needed in Iraq.

When he was killed, Magaoay was assigned to 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force from Camp Pendleton, Calif.

"He was very active," his father said. "He was very physical and had wanted to use the GI Bill to get a college degree to become a police officer or join the FBI."

"He wanted to be in the military since he was 10 years old," said Ellis-Williams. "I told him whatever decision he makes, I would be proud of him."

"I'm very proud of him," she said.

Ellis-Williams described her son as a giving person who would do anything for his friends and family.

"If you're in trouble, he'll try to help you out," she said.

Pearl City High Principal Suyama said Magaoay would always make time to visit his alma mater when he was home on leave.

"He was really a nice kid," he added. "He was focused on what he wanted to do."

Suyama said he met with Magaoay several times to ensure he was able to adjust to high school life at Pearl City.

"I think the Marine Corps was a chance for him to do something different. He really loved the Marines," he said.

An evening wake service will be held next Thursday at Borthwick Mortuary with funeral services planned for the following morning. Burial will be at the National Cemetery of the Pacific on Dec. 10.

Besides his father and mother, other survivors include a stepbrother, Octavio Rosas.