Marine 1st Lt. James R. Zimmerman

Died November 2, 2010 Serving During Operation Enduring Freedom

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25, of Aroostook, Maine; assigned to 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.; died Nov. 2 at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, of wounds received while conducting combat operations.

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Small high school mourns loss of former student

The Associated Press

HOULTON, Maine — The death of a Marine in Afghanistan is hitting both a family and a school in northern Maine especially hard.

The Pentagon said 1st Lt. James R. Zimmerman, 25, whose parents live in Smyrna Mills, died Nov. 2 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province.

News spread quickly at Greater Houlton Christian Academy, where Zimmerman graduated in 2003. The Bangor Daily News said that Zimmerman’s father, Tom Zimmerman, is the assistant head of the school; his mother, Jane, works with music students; and his sister and brother-in-law both teach there.

Wayne Watson, a family friend, said James Zimmerman always wanted to be a Marine.

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Flags at half-staff for fallen Marine

The Associated Press

HOULTON, Maine — Flags are flying at half-staff as a Marine killed in Afghanistan is being remembered at a memorial service in northern Maine.

A service is being held Thursday at Houlton High School for 1st Lt. James Zimmerman, who died Nov. 2 of injuries suffered in combat operations. The 25-year-old Zimmerman was a platoon commander out of Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Zimmerman grew up in Smyrna, about 10 miles outside of Houlton, and graduated from Greater Houlton Christian Academy.

Gov. John Baldacci has directed that U.S. and state of Maine flags fly at half-staff from sunrise to sunset in Zimmerman’s honor.

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Small town, school community shaken by Marine’s death

The Associated Press

News of the death of Aroostook, Maine, resident James Zimmerman hit his alma mater, Greater Houlton Christian Academy, hard.

Zimmerman, 25, was a Marine serving in Afghanistan’s Helmand province when he died Nov. 2.

His father, Tom, is the assistant head of the academy; his mother, Jane, works with music students there; his sister, Meagan, teaches fifth grade; and his brother-in-law, Nathan Foster, teaches fourth grade.

Zimmerman went there from kindergarten through 12th grade, graduating in 2003.

“We have a small, intimate school here,” said John Bishop, head of the academy. “We are very much like family.”

Former academy head Mark Jago said Zimmerman was a man of faith and a good teammate who could sometimes be mischievous, but always took responsibility for his actions. He said Zimmerman’s lifelong goal was to become a Marine.

When Jago asked the young platoon commander if his experience in the Marines was what he’d thought it would be, Zimmerman’s response was, “Absolutely, yes it is,” Jago said.

Zimmerman was assigned to Camp Lejeune, N.C.