Joseph Schwedler remembered

VIRGINIA BEACH -- When his high school football coach asked the players to lift weights three times a week, Clark Schwedler pumped iron five days a week.

When his government teacher taught about public service, Schwedler spoke persuasively about the need to give back to the community.

Schwedler's fitness and service were tested as a Navy SEAL during two deployments, the latest one to Iraq. On Thursday, Petty Officer 2nd Class Joseph Clark Schwedler was killed by enemy fire in Iraq's Anbar province.

Two other East Coast-based SEALs were wounded in the attack, the Department of Defense announced. Schwedler is the 37th service member with local ties to die in combat in Iraq or Afghanistan since war began in 2002.

"He was a great warrior, teammate, and friend to so many of us in the Naval Special Warfare community, and his spirit and sacrifice will live on in each of us as we continue to fight the global war on terror," Capt. Chaz Heron, commodore of Naval Special Warfare Group Two, said in a statement.

Schwedler grew up in Crystal Falls, Mich., a town of about 1,700 residents where the major industries are logging and tourism. His father, Joseph Schwedler, is a judge on the Iron County Trial Court, friends said Monday.

Schwedler played football and basketball and ran track at Forest Park High School in a community devoted to its school sports teams.

Bill St. John, a retired teacher, said Schwedler was a bright student, focused and goal- oriented. He spoke about public service and giving back to the community during class, St. John said.

Jim Nocerini, a retired teacher and coach, said Schwedler was quiet but made the room shine. "Any time you met Clarkie," he said, calling him by his nickname, "he had a smile on his face."

Schwedler graduated from high school in 1998 and attended Michigan State University. A career in Navy special warfare attracted him.

"This was his dream - to be a Navy SEAL," Nocerini said.

According to the Navy, Schwedler enlisted in March 2002. Eight months later, he entered Basic Underwater Demolition/SEALs training at Coronado Naval Amphibious base in California and graduated from Class 246.

Schwedler was assigned to SEAL Team Four at Norfolk Little Creek Naval Amphibious base in July 2004. He was deployed twice, said Lt. David Luckett, spokesman for Naval Special Warfare Group Two at Little Creek.

Schwedler lived in a brick ranch home off Rosemont Road in Virginia Beach. Neighbor Howard Perry said Monday that the two would often help each other with yard work.

Perry, a retired Marine Corps master gunnery sergeant, said the two talked about military service and the common bond between Marines and SEALs.

The neighbors had a small going-away party before Schwedler was deployed in August. Perry said his neighbor was ready for the deployment. "You've got a job to do," Perry said, "you've got to do it."

Schwedler earned the Iraqi Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, the Navy said.

The ribbons tell only part of the story of the work being done by SEALs overseas. Since the wars began, 11 locally based SEALs have been killed. Schwedler was the first to die in combat in Iraq, the Navy confirmed.

The SEALs were fighting in Anbar province, a Sunni-dominated region that includes the cities of Fallujah and Ramadi. The region has been a focal point of insurgents against U.S. troops and the Iraqi government.

Schwedler is survived by his parents, Joseph and Susan Schwedler, a brother and a sister.

Crystal Falls will hold a public funeral Saturday in the Forest Park High School gymnasium. Workers polished the hardwood basketball floor and the 1,000 seats in preparation for the ceremony. Nocerini expects most of the town to crowd into the gymnasium and honor their fallen soldier.

"This is what he wanted to be," he said. "And he gave his life for it."

From the Virginian Pilot

Related Link:
Joseph C. Schwedler dies from 'enemy action while conducting combat operations'