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Father of Slain Marine: Son Volunteered to Help People
By: Associated Press
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THORNVILLE, Ohio (AP) – The father of a Marine slain in the Chattanooga shootings says his son had volunteered for duty at the reserve center where he was killed because he was interested in helping people.
Kip Wells said at a news conference near his Buckeye Lake home that his son Lance Cpl. Skip Wells was scheduled to leave that duty soon, within days or weeks.
Kip Wells said Sunday that his son followed in a long family military tradition dating to his great-grandfather’s Navy service in WWII.
Kip Wells, who helped liberate Kuwait as a member of the Navy during the first Gulf War, said he found it ironic that a Kuwaiti-born person killed his son.
The 45-year-old Wells said families expect relatives serving in the military to be in harm’s way overseas, not at home.