The World Becomes Darker For A Moment

Sgt. Wesley R. Durbin of Dallas served in Iraq with both the Marines and Army.
He joined the Marines in June 2001, when he was 18 years old, shortly after graduating from Lutheran High School in Dallas. The honor student turned down a $5,000 academic scholarship that could have been repeated for up to five years at Concordia University in Nebraska. Instead, he chose to serve his country.

Army Sgt. Durbin, 26, was one of two soldiers killed Sept. 14 in Tunnis, Iraq, when a fellow soldier opened fire on the men, the Army said.
Staff Sgt. Darris J. Dawson, 24, of Pensacola, Fla., also died in the incident, of which the Army has released few details.

After serving in Iraq as a Marine, Sgt. Durbin was going to resume his college education, possibly as an English major.

"He decided he was a soldier all around, so he went back into the Army," said his wife, Brandi Durbin of Springfield, Ga. "He had wanted to go into the Army and see if it was the same experience for him as the Marines.
"He wanted to take his expertise and give it where it needed to be given," Mrs. Durbin said.
Sgt. Durbin was a fun-loving guy, his wife said.

"Everybody loved Wes the minute they met him," his wife said. "Anybody who met him – cashiers at the grocery stores, they loved him. He could make anybody smile."

Sgt. Durbin was born in Dallas. He joined the Marines with his best friend.

In spring 2004, then Marine Lance Cpl. Durbin issued a challenge to the congregation of Faith Lutheran Church in Wylie to have 150 parishioners welcome him back on Palm Sunday 2005.
It's not the average young Marine who goes off to war concerned about the people back home, said the Rev. Michael Frick, pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in Wylie.
"Wesley was saying, 'I want to see this church grow,' " Mr. Frick said. "That's a powerful thing."
More than 200 parishioners welcomed Lance Cpl. Durbin home from Iraq that Palm Sunday.

"Wesley was a person of great integrity and great desire to serve his country," Mr. Frick said.
Sgt. Durbin enlisted in the Army in August 2006. He met his wife-to-be in early 2007, and they married six months later.

"He was a soldier from the time he woke up to the time he went to bed," his wife said.
Sgt. Durbin volunteered in the Civil Air Patrol at Lutheran High School.

He received a Presidential Scholarship Award to attend Concordia University in Seward, Neb. The scholarship is given to students who demonstrate academic achievement and make a positive contribution to student life.

Sgt. Durbin was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, based in Fort Stewart, Ga.

The viewing will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at Restland Funeral Home.
Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at Faith Lutheran Church of Plano. He will be buried with military honor at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday at Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery.
In addition to his wife, Sgt. Durbin is survived by his parents, Randy and Carole Durbin of Dallas; a brother, Kenneth Durbin of Dallas; his stepdaughter, Pamara Underwood of Springfield, Ga.; and grandparents, Mary Jo Cole of Abilene and Roy and Margaret Durbin of Dallas. Sgt. Wesley R. Durbin of Dallas, with parents Carole and Randy, brother Kenneth, and the Rev. Michael Frick.- DMN obituary