Nicholas Manoukian laid to rest

SOUTHFIELD - Lance Cpl. Nicholas Manoukian was remembered Tuesday as both a Marine who served his country and a caring, thoughtful son and husband.

Mourners packed the Highland Park Baptist Church in Southfield to attend the funeral for Manoukian, a Lathrup Village native who was killed Oct. 21 in the Anbar province in Iraq, after the Humvee in which he was riding was struck by an improvised explosive device.

They heard of a man who loved to cook, play music and compose poetry for the bride he had just married.

"He is the man who is tough enough in body and spirit to face the enemy ... and tender enough to say, 'I love you, Mom,' " recalled his stepfather, Gary Calhoun.

Calhoun told of Manoukian's proposal to his new bride, his junior high school sweetheart, Danielle. The 22-year-old Marine had his then-girlfriend search for Easter eggs until she found the engagement ring.

They married in July, while he was on leave from the military, having returned from serving in Fallujah. They were able to spend about five weeks together before he was redeployed to Iraq, where he served as a radio operator.

"Nick had to take time to think" to truly surprise her, said the Rev. Gordon P. Ainsworth, who officiated at the service. "That means Nick thought deeply about his wife."

He also wrote her poetry about the distance that separated them while he served overseas, samples of which were read during the funeral service.

"Saturated lips gone dry from not being kissed. ... Love's worst enemy, distance," he wrote her.

"It's the heart of a young man who is passionate for his wife," Ainsworth said, praising Manoukian's parents. "Moms and dads are so important in the development of a child. They exposed Nick to all kinds of culture, what life is all about."

Manoukian was adopted as a 1-year-old by Mary and Isaac Manoukian of Lathrup Village, Ainsworth said. His father died when he was 12.

Southfield Police Chief Joseph Thomas recalled a little boy who carried himself with the seriousness and politeness of a Marine.

"I'm here to say goodbye to Isaac's little boy," Thomas told the crowd, noting he had been friends with Manoukian's late father.

When Isaac Manoukian asked Thomas to meet his son, the boy reached only to the police chief's waist.

"Then upright, very proud, he shook my hand," Thomas said. "Nick, you touched so many lives and so many people that you will never know. Mary and Isaac, you did a great job. Goodbye, Nick, carry on."

From the Oakland Press

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