Steven A. Rintamaki
 |
| Age: |
|
21 |
| Hometown: |
Lynnwood, WA |
| Date of Death: |
9/16/2004 |
| Incident Location: |
Anbar province, Iraq |
| Branch of Military: |
|
Marines |
| Rank: |
Cpl. |
| Unit: |
3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division |
| Unit's Base: |
Camp Pendleton, CA |
|
Steven A. Rintamaki was adopted as a child and had never met his biological parents. He decided to call them before leaving for the war in Iraq. He met Stacey Swinson, his mother, the day he called. "As soon as I had rounded this corner, our eyes connected and we just knew it was each other," Swinson said. "He came up to me and gave me a huge hug and we held each other for what seemed like eternity but I know it was only a few minutes." Rintamaki, of Lynnwood, Wash., died Sept. 16 in action in Anbar province, Iraq. He was based at Camp Pendleton. In a letter written the day before he died, Rintamaki told his youngest sister that he had grown into the man he wanted to be and was at peace with himself. "He's my brother, you know ... like a father figure to me, big brother, being protective and stuff," Tiarra Rintamaki said. Rintamaki is also survived by his adoptive mother, Myra Rintamaki.
16/03/2009Free American
Dear Steven,
Although I did not know you, I know there are many like you. Those who are not afraid to take a stand for something they believe in. I am able to sit here tonight in relative safety and write this e-mail because you and those like you are willing to do what I cannot. Perhaps we will stay strong. I am not encouraged by our political climate and too many people have forgotten what happened on Sept. 11, 2001. Maybe they believe that Saddam was going to use all that uranium oxide for a nuclear generator. We are weak. Thank you for being strong. May God bless and prosper your family as they deal with your loss....
Love,
A Free American
"Where I used to have a heart,
feels like a mile wide ditch.
Got a hole inside,
The doctor just can't stitch.
Gone without a trace,
You left a hollow place.
There's not a stone to mark,
Where I used to have a heart."
Martina McBride