Rusk, Colton Wesley

Colton Wesley Rusk was a 20-year-old Marine from Orange Grove, Texas, a small community near Corpus Christi. He served as a Private First Class with the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, part of Regimental Combat Team 2, I Marine Expeditionary Force Forward, based out of Camp Pendleton, California. His unit was deployed to Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, a region that saw intense combat during the U.S. troop surge of 2010.

Rusk was killed on December 6, 2010. According to the Department of Defense, he died while conducting combat operations in Helmand. His death occurred during a period of heightened offensive actions by U.S. and allied forces against Taliban strongholds in the province.

His battalion, the 3/5, known as 'Darkhorse,' sustained significant casualties during its 2010-2011 deployment. The unit was engaged in clearing operations in the Sangin district, an area notorious for improvised explosive devices and fierce resistance.

Rusk's death was recorded by the Marine Corps as a hostile casualty. He was one of 499 U.S. service members killed in Afghanistan in 2010, the deadliest year of the war for American forces at that time.

Memorials for Rusk were held in Texas and at Camp Pendleton. His family established a scholarship fund in his name, and a military working dog he had worked with was adopted by his family, according to news reports from the time.

Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led combat mission in Afghanistan, 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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