Lieutenant Colonel Joseph McCloud, 39, of Grosse Pointe Park, Mich. was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. He died on December 3rd, 2006, when the CH-46 helicopter he was in crashed in Anbar province, Iraq.

Growing up, LtCol McCloud was an outstanding athlete, playing linebacker for the All-City team in Detroit and center fielder in baseball. He graduated from the University of Tennessee with a degree in liberal arts and history.

LtCol McCloud enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1990. Over his career, he worked at the Pentagon, did a fellowship on Capitol Hill, and served as an instructor at the Marine Corps Officer Candidate School in Quantico.

LtCol McCloud was a devoted husband, father, son, and a Marine’s Marine, who believed freedom is precious and well worth protecting. He was recalled as a good-natured man with a dry humor who cherished his family – and his two-tone 1959 Ford Fairlane.

He is survived by his wife, Maggie, and their children, Hayden, Grace and Meghan.