11/21/2025
Lance Corporal James Boelk was born on January 16, 1986, in Longview Texas. From birth, James was branded a warrior. Boelk was born with his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck nine times, and for the first two years of his life, he struggled to breathe normally. Despite this, James grew to be six feet, four inches tall.
As a child, James was very hands-on; he played with Legos, fixed broken devices, and even decided to take apart his grandmother’s working clock to understand how it worked. His parents, Dave and Cilicia Boelk, often bought James small appliances to tinker with. James and his six siblings were homeschooled. Their time together strengthened their love for one another and bolstered their family-centered mentality. As a Christian family, James and his siblings learned the importance of God, family, a strong work ethic, and being loving toward others. LCpl Boelk held to these principles throughout his life.
James spent much of his childhood exposed to the military. His father served in the Air Force which meant frequent moves and the opportunity to experience the world. Without complaint, James always adapted well to his new environment. Making friends was never any trouble for him. His large stature and shy, lovable personality always lit up the room. James and his family lived in Washington, Korea, Iceland, Florida, Texas, and California. Living in generally busy areas, Boelk truly valued the quiet and simple things in life. James loved hiking, exploring caves, and watching whales. Rather than being entertained, he much preferred to find his own entertainment; James understood the value of living each moment to the fullest.
After moving to San Diego, California, James attended Golden State Baptist College. To pay for his degree, he accepted a job at Google in their security department. There, he was promoted to management and worked between 60 and 80 hours per week. His time obligation to work made school extremely difficult to manage, but he still needed to work in order to pay for his education. He began looking for a suitable job and decided to look toward the Air Force and Marine Corps reserves. After talking to the recruiters from each respective branch, he decided to sign a six-year contract to serve as a United States Marine.
As a Marine, James Boelk arrived at his Fleet Infantry Unit at Camp Pendleton in the summer of 2009. He was assigned the most decorated Infantry Unit in the Marine Corps, 3rd Battalion 5th Marine Corps Regiment 1st Marine Division. As a part of 3/5, LCpl Boelk was elevated to the position of Radiotelephone Operator for 3rd platoon. He was known by his platoon commander to be “solid as a rock”. James was always first to volunteer and was heavily relied on to complete any task or mission. He performed every duty above the standard without complaint and encouraged others to do the same. No matter how terrible the situation, LCpl Boelk turned his adversity into a laugh. Zachory White, a Marine who served with James, said:
“One thing that I, along with many others admired about James is how he can turn any horrible situation into something that we would later be joking about, from getting a couple laughs out of sleeping in the pouring rain on the side of a hill with no tent to making the simplest jokes about how hot it would get during training in the 29 Palms desert in California (135°F).”
In September of 2010, the 3rd Battalion 5th Marine Regiment was deployed to conduct combat operations in the Sangin Valley Province of Afghanistan. Sangin was known as the most dangerous place in the world. Despite this, James was unphased and maintained his composure through prayer.
October 15, 2010, while returning from a 48-hour patrol with his squad, Lance Corporal James D. Boelk was killed in an IED explosion. One of the members of his unit recalls the incident:
“An experience you would not wish on your worst enemies, having someone you love and care for so deeply taken away from you so quickly in the flash of an eye, a tremendous amount of pain ran through my heart, nothing like I have felt before, in such disbelief at what was happening before me.”
Today, James is remembered for his honorable service in the United States Marine Corps, his commitment to his friends, family, and God. Heaven has gained the soul of an American hero, and we can only regret the fact that we were never able to meet him.
