Jesse D. Tillery killed during combat operations

Three blue stars emblazoned on the back of a baseball cap Martin Tillery of Vesper wears are meant to represent his three sons who, during October, were all serving with the U.S. military in Iraq.

On the front of the cap are their names and the insignia of their military affiliation.

One star is for Jim, 22, an Army specialist who finished his second tour of duty in Iraq and returned home last month.

Another is for Jared, 20, also an Army specialist, who was deployed to Iraq in September about the same time Martin Tillery's youngest son, Jesse, a Marine lance corporal, was sent there with his unit.

The star that represents Jesse Tillery, 19, who died Saturday from wounds received during combat in Anbar province, will now be colored gold.

"It will indicate that he died in service," Martin Tillery said in a telephone interview Monday.

"He was a pretty simple boy," he said of his son, who was assigned to the 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Camp Lejeune, N.C. "And he meant the world to us."

His son, Martin Tillery said, did not play high school sports and did not pursue any hobbies that he was aware of.

Instead, his son took great joy in simple things like family and friends.

"He was very well liked," his father said. "Anybody who knew Jesse liked him."

Tyler Hamel, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, recalled when his family moved from the nearby Town of Grand Rapids to Vesper, in the center of the state northwest of Wisconsin Rapids. There, in second grade, he met Tillery at Vesper Elementary School.

"He was my first friend in Vesper, and he became my best friend throughout grade school," Hamel said.

The two played Little League baseball at Vesper Elementary, Hamel at first base and Tillery in right field, and spent hours at Tillery's house playing with military figurines, Hamel said.

"He had a great imagination," Hamel said.

"It was never boring hanging out with him."

"He was just an all-around great guy," he said. "He could be one of the best friends any person could have."

When Hamel's father, Dave Hamel, operated a farm in Vesper about six summers ago, Tillery helped him bale hay and plant trees.

"He was very respectful, very polite," Dave Hamel said.

Hamel recalled Tillery telling him of his plans to join the Marines at the boys' June 2005 graduation from Wisconsin Rapids' Lincoln High School.

"It was something he wanted to do," Hamel said.

Jesse Tillery signed up for the Marines during his senior year, his father said, and shipped out for training at Camp Lejeune in August 2005.

While in Iraq, Jim Tillery was attached to a medical unit and served on a helicopter. His brother Jared now works in supply, Martin Tillery said.

His youngest son was driving an amphibious assault vehicle when it was struck by an improvised explosive device, his father said.

Jesse Tillery is the 64th Wisconsin service member killed in Iraq.

"We are proud of him, very, very proud of him," his father said.

"We are proud of all of our sons."

Jesse Tillery is also survived by a sister, Joelle Mayers, and his mother, Kathy.

From the Journal Sentinel