Slain Marine who cradled baby at Kabul airport loved her job

“We want to make sure that people know that these are the kids that are sacrificing themselves, and he’s got a family who loves him and a wife who loves him and a baby that he’ll never get to meet,” Cheyenne McCollum said.

Regi Stone, the father of one of Rylee McCollum’s friends, described McCollum as “a good kid,” who was resilient, smart and courageous. Stone shared a note that his wife, Kim, sent to their son Eli Stone, who is also in the military and deployed elsewhere. Kim wrote that she remembered telling the friends to run the other way if they had to go in first and that both of them said, “If we die doing this, we die doing what we love.”

KAREEM MAE’LEE GRANT NIKOUI, 20

Lance Cpl. Kareem Mae’Lee Grant Nikoui, of Norco, California, sent videos to his family hours before he died, showing himself interacting with children in Afghanistan. In one clip, he asked a young boy to say hello.

“Want to take a video together buddy?” Nikoui said, leaning in to take a video of himself with the boy. “All right, we’re heroes now, man.”

Family friend Paul Arreola said the videos show "the heart of this young man, the love he has.”

“The family is just heartbroken," he said. Arreola described Nikoui as an “amazing young man” full of promise who always wanted to be a Marine and set out to achieve his goal. He is survived by his parents and three siblings.

“He loved this country and everything we stand for. It’s just so hard to know that we’ve lost him,” he said, crying.

Nikoui was also in the JROTC, and the Norco High School Air Force JROTC posted on Facebook that he was “one of our best Air Force JROTC cadets” and that “Kareem was set on being a Marine & always wanted to serve his country.”

MAXTON SOVIAK, 22

The flag in front of the Ohio home where Navy Hospital Corpsman Maxton “Max” Soviak’s parents live was at half-staff as a steady stream of friends, coaches, teachers and family stopped by to offer condolences.

Soviak, of Berlin Heights, was remembered as a friendly, well-liked guy who amused others and had been a member of the state champion wrestling team and made the final four football playoffs two years in a row. He had 12 brothers and sisters.

"Max was a wonderful son who loved his family, his community, and was proud to serve in the U.S. Navy," where he planned to spend his career, his family said in a statement. “Words cannot express how heartbroken we are with this news and we will miss Max tremendously.”

Soviak graduated from Edison High School in 2017. At Friday night’s football game, fans honored him with a moment of silence.

“Max always was smiling,” said Vince Ragnoni, his electrical technology teacher. “Max was good for pulling shenanigans and liked to get other people to laugh.”

He enlisted in September 2017 and attended Hospital Corpsman School in San Antonio, Texas, before postings in Guam and at Camp Pendleton.

In his final words to his mother over FaceTime, he reassured her he would be safe, they said.

“Don’t worry mom, my guys got me," he said. "They won’t let anything happen to me.”

HUMBERTO SANCHEZ, 22

Marine Cpl. Humberto Sanchez was among 17 members of his Indiana high school class who joined the military after graduation.

Sanchez played on Logansport High School’s varsity soccer team and was in the homecoming court his senior year, Principal Matt Jones said. Jones called Sanchez a dedicated artist who took many art classes along with honors and dual credit college courses.

“Humberto was a bright, athletic young man who was popular, well-liked by his soccer teammates, classmates, coaches and teachers,” Jones said. “He was honored to be putting on the Marine uniform and serving his country.”

DYLAN MEROLA, 20

In his last message home, Lance Cpl. Dylan Merola told his mother he wouldn't be able to speak to her for a while because he was being moved to a new location in Afghanistan.