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Corporal Robert A. Hendriks, a Marine reservist from Locust Valley, was killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan on Monday. The 25-year-old was a decorated Marine who was set to be coming back to Locust Valley in May.
On Monday, April 8th, the Department of Defense announced the death of Cpl. Hendriks. Also killed in the blast was Staff Sgt. Christopher K.A. Slutman, 43, a member of the FDNY, and Sgt. Benjamin S. Hines, 31, of York, Pennsylvania. The three were assigned to 25th Marine Regiment, a Massachusetts-based Reserve unit.
Slutman, Hines and Hendriks died when their vehicle was hit with an improvised explosive device near Bagram Air Base in Parwan province. Three other U.S. troops were injured in the attack, along with an Afghan contractor. The Taliban has taken credit for the killing. Defense Department officials initially reported that the contractor had also been killed in the blast, but on Tuesday, April 9th, announced that he had survived.
Hendriks joined the Marine Corps directly after he graduated from Locust Valley High School in 2012.
Col. Hendrik's body arrived back in the states on Thursday at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. According to reports, Henrik's brother Joseph escorted his brother's remains back home. Relatives of the deceased Marines are invited to witness what the military calls a dignified transfer in which the cases containing the remains are transferred to a vehicle from the aircraft that ferried them to the United States.
Officials did not immediately respond to questions about how many members of the 25th Marines are currently deployed to Afghanistan or what their main mission there is. These are the first combat casualties for the Marine Corps since 2016. The fatalities brought to seven the number of U.S. troops killed this year in Afghanistan, underscoring the difficulties in bringing peace to the war-wrecked country even as Washington has stepped up efforts to find a way to end the 17-year conflict.
Funeral arrangements are pending, but the community is already honoring their fallen comrade. Governor Cuomo ordered flags to be set at half-mast in honor of the fallen marines, and at Friday night's Islander's playoff hockey game a moment of silence was observed in remembrance of the servicemen.
Published reports note that Hendriks was a decorated service member. He had received the Selected Marine Corps Reserve Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Medal and the Armed Forces Reserve Medal.
The Oak Neck Athletic Council, for which Hendriks played football when he was a youth, is honoring him in a most unusual way. They had decals printed (donated by the Glen Cove Printery) with Hendrik's initials which will be worn on each player's helmet. They also held a short ceremony in remembrance of Hendriks where his former coach, Jake Jacoby, said a few words and passed out the decals.
Grey skies set a sad mood for a ceremony honoring Sergeant Robert Hendriks, a Marine who was killed in Afghanistan, April 8th. The Ceremony took place on Tuesday, April 16th on the Oak Neck Athletic Council's field at Centre Island Beach.
Robert Hendricks was a part of the Oak Neck Family. As a young boy he played football for the Oak Neck Athletic Council. Tom Lumi, a father of a 6th grader had the idea to make up decals with Robert's initials for the teams helmets to honor him. The Glen Cove Printery generously donated the decals to the teams.
Lacrosse teams, coaches, and parents along with Al Stabb, president of the Oak Neck Athletic Council, Helen Piscitello vice president, Pat Natale one of the founders of Oak Neck, Eric Carlstrom the director of Lacrosse and Jake Jacobi who was Robert Hendrik's football coach, were all gathered on the field. After several heartfelt speeches, there was a moment of silence, and then helmets were held high as a salute in honor of a fallen hero. Coaches then affixed the sticker to the players helmets. In the fall there will be another ceremony for the Oak Neck football teams.