Min Hee "Andy" Kim remembered

As a student at Pioneer High School, Min Hee "Andy'' Kim had a yearning to serve his country in the military.

But, as a good son who wanted to honor his parents' wishes, he enrolled at Purdue University after high school graduation in 2004.

Thoughts of the military life wouldn't go away, however, and by the second semester, he was in boot camp learning how to be a United States Marine. After a few more months at the University of Michigan in Dearborn, he was sent overseas.

Lance Cpl. Kim, 20, died Wednesday while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province in Iraq, the Department of Defense said.

His three best friends said Friday that while they'll miss him terribly, they know he died at peace.

"With his belief in Jesus Christ, he knew he had a greater hope,'' said Gabe Pak, his tennis partner at Pioneer. "He wasn't here for the things of this world. He knew he had a reward in heaven.''

Kim was born in Maryland and lived in various parts of the country. His family moved to Ann Arbor in 1996. He is survived by his parents, Don and Mi Hea Kim, as well as his younger brother Isaac, a senior at Pioneer High School. Funeral arrangements are pending.

His parents are taking the death very hard, said David Shin, pastor of the Harvest Mission Community Church in Ann Arbor, which Kim joined as a teenager.

"He was very young, and it happened very suddenly,'' Shin said.

Kim felt a sense of urgency about joining the military, Shin said, adding: "I don't know so much that it was directly related to the war on terror, but he wanted to serve his country.''

Kim was assigned to the Marine Reserve's 1st Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division out of Lansing. Shin said he'd talked to Kim just two weeks ago, and he reported that his unit had been going on patrols every day and the work was physically difficult.

All of Kim's close friends knew of his interest in joining the Marines, Pak said.

"Whenever we talked about the future, he mentioned wanting to join the military and wanted to serve his country,'' he said. "That's really what he wanted to do.'' Pak said Kim's e-mails from Iraq ended a couple of weeks ago, when he assumed Kim's duties there were becoming more intense.

"The main thing about him is that he had joy, no matter what the circumstances,'' Pak said. "No matter what he was going through, or hardships, he was one of the most joyful people I met. He always brought a smile to my face. Even in Iraq, he'd crack jokes and remind me of all the good times we had together.''

Much of Kim's extended family has arrived from out of town to support his family, Pak said.

Justin Aramaki, another of Kim's closest friends, said Kim enjoyed tennis, hockey, playing guitar, movies, ultimate Frisbee, and random road trips.

"He had a way about him, Aramaki said. "There was something about him that set him apart and made him unique from everyone else.''

Aramaki recalled the time he was struggling emotionally and called Kim just to talk. The two decided to drive around town. Aramaki said that while he was in midsentence, Kim turned up the radio and started singing loudly to one ridiculous song after another.

"That was exactly what I needed,'' he said. "I didn't need to talk. He understood everything I was going through, and he realized his friendship was what I needed at the time. And it was perfect.''

Aramaki attended a memorial service Thursday night at the Michigan Union, where Kim's family and friends gathered to remember him as a young man who was thankful for everything this country had given him and wanted to give back in return.

Aaron Kim, who is not related to Min Hee Kim, went to Purdue with Kim following their high school graduation together in 2004. Though the two lived in separate buildings, they spent much of their free time together.

"We'd go to the gym and work out because he was getting himself ready to go to training camp,'' he said. "He wouldn't push himself that hard, and I said, 'You're going to be a Marine ...' He said when the time came, he would be strong enough to get through it; that training would be no problem.'' Aaron Kim had his doubts, but his friend proved him wrong.

"He was really diligent in everything he did,'' he said. "He always set goals, and no matter what it took or what he had to do, he achieved them.

"We talked to him a lot about the military being dangerous. But he was passionate about it. We didn't understand how or why he had so much passion for it. We were kind of like, 'Are you seriously going to do this?' By the way he approached it, we could tell this was his passion and desire. There was not much we could say. The best we could do is support him.'' Aaron Kim said that despite the sorrow at the "huge, immeasurable loss'' of their friend, he doesn't feel anger.

"He brought a lot of happiness and laughter in our lives,'' he said. "We feel blessed to have the time we had, and we're all encouraged by his life.''

From the Ann Arbor News

Family, friends mourn A2 soldier slain in Iraq

Every chair in the Anderson Room of the Michigan Union was filled last night. Those unable to find a seat lined the aisles and gathered at the back.

The sounds of stifled sobbing and crumpling tissues echoed through the room where family and friends had gathered to celebrate the life and mourn the death of Lance Cpl. Minhee Kim.

Kim, 20, died Wednesday in the Anbar province of Iraq. The Marine was a student at the University's Dearborn campus. He had spent the last 10 years of his life as a resident of Ann Arbor. He had been in Iraq for only a few months.

In a eulogy, his brother, Isaac Kim, spoke about how his brother embraced life and those around him.

Once, when Isaac Kim and his brother were young, Minhee Kim came home with his knee covered in blood. Shocked and worried, his mother asked him what had happened. Kim was completely unfazed by the injury. He calmly told his mother he had hurt it diving for an errant ball in a pickup basketball game.

"He had no fear," Isaac Kim said as he held back tears.

The speakers at last night's memorial service painted a portrait of a young man deeply rooted in his faith and his community.

Before leaving for Iraq, Kim had spoken with Pastor David Shin of the Harvest Mission Community Church in Ann Arbor about joining the ministry when he returned. When Shin asked Kim why he was joining the Marines, Kim said he wanted to serve his community and the country that had been had so good to him.

When Shin heard those words, "it was a breath of fresh air," he said.

Another friend told the story of when he and Kim met, playing recreational hockey. As the only Asian Americans on the team, they were drawn to each other. The two forged a friendship.

They often stayed up late, jamming on guitars and talking about their faith.

Kim spent his first year of college at Purdue University before transferring to the University's Dearborn campus last year.

While in Iraq, Kim sent his last e-mail to his friends, family and fellow congregation members exactly a month before he died.

Shin read from the e-mail during the service.

The letter said his unit had just arrived at the outskirts of Fallujah.

He described the excitement and anxiety of finally seeing battle and wrote about how his faith had been strengthened by the experience.

As the service ended, tears welled in the eyes of nearly everyone in the room. Several people lingered in the room and outside the doors after it was over, hugging, consoling each other and helping to brush aside the tears.

Shin said crying was a necessary part of the process, something that everyone has to go through. But the key, he said, is learning to take joy a the life that had ended so suddenly.

From the Michigan Daily

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Min Hee "Andy" Kim killed in combat