Paul Lyons, father of Marine Lance Cpl. Christopher Lyons, 24, top left, said his son wanted to do something after the September 11th terrorist attacks.  “He wanted to finish college and his idea was to join the Marine Reserves and I was very proud of him,” Paul said. 

His son was following in his footsteps.  Paul retired from the Navy in August of 2001 after 25 years as a Chief Petty Officer. After basic training in 2003, Christopher Lyons married his wife, Bethany, (pictured together, lower left) and was sent to Iraq later that year.  He served for two and a half years with 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, Marine Forces Reserve, out of Columbus, Ohio.  The unit is attached to Regimental Combat team 2, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward).

In April, Bethany Lyons gave birth to Ella.  Lyons got his first glimpse of his daughter in e-mail exchanges with his wife. Before he was deployed Christopher was a journalist for an Ohio newspaper.  He used his writing skills in Iraq, e-mailing his family and sending reports to his newspaper about some of the good things going on in Iraq.

“When he would e-mail us he was so proud of what he was doing,” Paul said. “I remember some company in the U.S. sent over stuffed animals and his unit would give them to the Iraqi kids.”   Christopher Lyons was killed July 28, 2005, when his unit came under attack by enemy small-arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades while conducting combat operations in Cykla, Iraq.

Paul Lyons said they got a call from the Idaho governor after his son’s funeral.  They were invited to meet with President Bush.  His wife, Debbie, made up a photo album to share with the President.  Christopher’s wife and daughter flew in for the meeting.  “I was very touched because he was very emotional,” Paul said. “He came over and hugged us and we talked.  He knew about the album and he said he’d like to see the album.  I remember he put on his reading glasses and when he opened the first page of the picture of Christopher in his uniform, when he saw that, he just openly cried and obviously we were so touched by that it didn’t take much for us to start crying.”

• Paul Lyons ... has asked to speak with the president so he might encourage him to sustain the fight in Iraq. Lyons' only son was killed in Cykla, Iraq, last month.
  
  "We need to let those people over there do their jobs so they can get it done," said Lyons, who retired to Nampa after 24 years in the Navy. "I don't want my granddaughter and the next generation to fight a conflict we need to take care of now." The Idaho Statesman, 8/11/05