Cpl. Jacob C. Leicht, 24, of College Station, Texas, died May 27 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif. Following high school, Jacob was awarded a full Navy ROTC scholarship at the University of Texas at Austin, after which he would be commissioned as an officer. However, in a move which epitomized Jacob's desire to serve, he turned down the scholarship to join the Marines as an enlisted man. Jacob saw his dream become reality when, following boot camp and further training, he deployed to Iraq in the spring of 2007. Jacob had been in Iraq for only a few weeks, serving in the Anbar Province, when the Humvee Jacob was driving was hit by an IED. Jacob's right leg was seriously injured, and he was immediately flown to Landstuhl, Germany, for emergency surgery. Jacob then was transferred to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, for an additional 18 surgeries in an attempt to save his leg. Following the last successful surgery, Jacob spent the next two years in intense rehab in an effort to be reinstated to active duty, which he achieved in the fall of 2009. In January 2010, Jacob married Leslie Garcia of Kerrville, Texas, and the newlyweds moved into military housing at Camp Pendleton. Cpl. Leicht, deployed to the Helmuth River Valley area of Afghanistan in April 2010, with the 1st LAR Battalion, 1st Marine Division. After being in the country for less than a month, Jacob was killed in action on May 27, 2010, the 1,000th casualty in the Afghan theater. Jacob is survived by his wife, Leslie Garcia Leicht; his parents, Craig and Shirly Leicht; two brothers, Jonathan Leicht and family and Jesse Leicht; three sisters, Elizabeth Leicht-Chapa and family, Mary Rose Leicht and Sarah Grace Leicht.
Cpl. Jacob C. Leicht, 24, of College Station, Texas, died May 27 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif. Following high school, Jacob was awarded a full Navy ROTC scholarship at the University of Texas at Austin, after which he would be commissioned as an officer. However, in a move which epitomized Jacob's desire to serve, he turned down the scholarship to join the Marines as an enlisted man. Jacob saw his dream become reality when, following boot camp and further training, he deployed to Iraq in the spring of 2007. Jacob had been in Iraq for only a few weeks, serving in the Anbar Province, when the Humvee Jacob was driving was hit by an IED. Jacob's right leg was seriously injured, and he was immediately flown to Landstuhl, Germany, for emergency surgery. Jacob then was transferred to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, for an additional 18 surgeries in an attempt to save his leg. Following the last successful surgery, Jacob spent the next two years in intense rehab in an effort to be reinstated to active duty, which he achieved in the fall of 2009. In January 2010, Jacob married Leslie Garcia of Kerrville, Texas, and the newlyweds moved into military housing at Camp Pendleton. Cpl. Leicht, deployed to the Helmuth River Valley area of Afghanistan in April 2010, with the 1st LAR Battalion, 1st Marine Division. After being in the country for less than a month, Jacob was killed in action on May 27, 2010, the 1,000th casualty in the Afghan theater. Jacob is survived by his wife, Leslie Garcia Leicht; his parents, Craig and Shirly Leicht; two brothers, Jonathan Leicht and family and Jesse Leicht; three sisters, Elizabeth Leicht-Chapa and family, Mary Rose Leicht and Sarah Grace Leicht.
