Nolen, Michael Conrad

Michael Conrad Nolen was born in Spring Valley, Wisconsin. He enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 8, of the II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Before his deployment to Afghanistan, he had also served on deployments to the Philippines and the Horn of Africa.

Corporal Nolen died on June 27, 2011, while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, a volatile region in southern Afghanistan. According to the Department of Defense, he was killed by hostile fire. Specific details of the engagement were not publicly released by military authorities.

Nolen's death occurred during Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan that began in October 2001 following the September 11 attacks. By 2011, the war was in its tenth year, with a significant U.S. troop surge focused on clearing Taliban strongholds in provinces like Helmand and neighboring Kandahar.

His death was reported by several news outlets, including the Marine Corps Times and local Wisconsin newspapers. He was survived by his parents and siblings. A memorial service was held in his hometown of Spring Valley.

Corporal Nolen is remembered on the Afghanistan War Memorial at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum and is listed on the online memorials of the Marine Corps and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. His name is among the 2,356 American service members who died during Operation Enduring Freedom.

Michael Nolen was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom (2001–2014). The conflict concluded in December 2014. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.

Among those documented in the same conflict: Andrews, Evander Earl, Edmunds, Jonn Joseph, Stonesifer, Kristofor Tif, Davis, Bryant Leroy.

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