Marco L. Miller dies from injuries sustained in mortar attack

WARREN — The body of Warren native Sgt. Marco L. Miller, 36, a combat cameraman who sustained mortal wounds during a mortar attack Sunday in Taji, Iraq, will be returned to his hometown sometime Sunday evening, family members said Thursday.

Funeral services are expected to be handled by Sterling-McCullough Williams Funeral Home with church services at Grace AME Church, 1137 Main Ave. S.W.

Miller died from his wounds Tuesday at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, a U.S. Military hospital complex near Frankford, Germany. He was kept on life support until a brother, Demond Miller, and sisters, Meka and Kim Miller, arrived to see him.

‘‘It was difficult,’’ Demond Miller said. ‘‘Everything was so overwhelming. We flew into Germany and did not get any sleep for two days while we were in country.’’

Renee Daniels, Miller’s mother, who did not go to Germany, said funeral arrangements have not been finalized.

‘‘My daughters will be making the arrangements,’’ Daniels said. ‘‘We hope to have everything finalized by Tuesday.’’

Sgt. Miller was assigned to the 3rd Battalion Support Company, 20th Special forces Group (Airborne) while in Iraq. In the U.S., he was stationed at Camp Blanding, Fla. He lived in Longwood, Fla. and had an infant daughter who was born after his deployment and whom he has seen only in photos.

He enlisted in the Army in Nov. 1990 as a chemical operations specialist, serving until 1994. Following the events of Sept. 11, he enlisted in the Florida National Guard as a decontamination specialist assigned to 3rd Battalion, 20th Special Forces Command (Airborne) in January 2002.

He was mobilized in May 2006, and deployed in August 2006.

According to military sources, Miller’s service earned him the Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Southwest Asia Service Medal with Bronze Service Star, Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal with ‘‘M’’ device, Army Service Ribbon and Parachutist Badge.

From the Tribune Chronicle