CASSELBERRY, FL, US
U.S. Marine Corps
GYSGT, 7TH ESB (-), (1ST MLG FWD, I MEF FWD), 1ST MLG, CAMP PENDLETON, CA
05/06/2010, HELMAND PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN
A Camp Pendleton-based Marine killed in a weekend bomb blast in Helmand province, Afghanistan, was lauded for his bravery today by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Gunnery Sergeant Floyd E. C. Holley, 36, died Sunday from injuries suffered in a bomb blast.
“Maria and I send our thoughts and prayers to the family and friends of Gunnery Sgt. Floyd Holley,” Schwarzenegger stated. “He was a brave Marine who died honorably, defending our freedoms. We are grateful for his service, and we will never forget his courage.”
Holley, from Casselberry, Fla., was married, and his wife is expecting his first child, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
He was one of two members of the 7th Engineer Support Battalion, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force.
Just weeks away from coming home to share the birth of his baby girl, Gunnery Sergeant Floyd Holley is killed by a homemade bomb in Afghanistan. To the sound of gun shots and a trumpet playing, he is laid to rest in a homecoming very different from what his family had planned. Now they honor the life of man they called a Marine’s Marine.
“He did what he loved. He loved his job. He loved his country. He married the woman he was madly in love with. He lived his life to the fullest. We should all be so lucky to do that,” says Holley’s childhood friend Josh Prokes.
Holley was part of an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company that detonate bombs and other types of explosives in Afghanistan.
“I think that’s why, what drove him — adventure, you know — the challenge. And the fact that it fit his personality. Loved what he did,” says friend Stephen Manser.
Holley’s fellow Marines say last Sunday a bomb went off taking his life.
“God knows how many Marines he saved in the process. We’re proud of him,” says Manser.
Holley’s friends came from across the country to say good-bye.
“He had an energy about him. You just wanted to be around him,” says Prokes.
The Camp Pendleton-based Marine was married for less than a year. His wife openly wept as the flag from her husband’s casket was presented to her. Holley’s friends hope their devastating loss is a reminder that the costs of freedom are very real.
“We’re losing guys every day and you don’t realize how many people are affected by that one death.”
Over his multiple deployments, Gunnery Sergeant Holley received numerous awards and decorations, including the Purple Heart.
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