Kevin Shea

Kevin Michael Shea (September 14, 1966 – September 14, 2004) was an American military officer who was killed in Iraq. Posthumously promoted to lieutenant colonel, Shea was the highest-ranking Marine to die in the Iraq War at the time of his death.

A 1984 graduate of Bishop O'Dea High School in Seattle, Washington, Shea accepted an appointment to the United States Air Force Academy, where he was a standout defensive end on the football team, played in the 1987 Freedom Bowl, and was a member of the academy's 1989 national champion rugby team.

After graduating, Shea accepted a commission as a 2nd lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. He completed The Basic School (TBS) and the Infantry Officer’s Course at Quantico, Virginia.

Shea's assignments included Support Company Detachment Commander, for the 9th Communications Battalion in Operation Desert Storm, Liaison Officer for Marine Forces Central Command (MARCENT) G-6, and JCSE Task Force Commander, Combined Special Operations Task Force, during Operation Desert Thunder, and Communications Officer (G-6) Regimental Combat Team 1 (RCT-1), 1st Marine Div, Operation Iraqi Freedom II.

Shea also earned a master of science degree in electrical engineering at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, and served as an instructor in electrical engineering and a rugby coach at the United States Naval Academy, where he was revered by the students.

Shea received the Bronze Star a few weeks before his death. He did not inform his family.

On September 14, 2004, Shea was serving as the Communications Information Systems Officer assigned to Regimental Combat Team 1, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Camp Pendleton, California. He was mortally wounded in a rocket attack on Camp Fallujah in Al Anbar Province, Iraq.

Legacy
After his death, a highly anticipated rugby match between the Naval Academy, then ranked No. 3 in the nation, and its rival Air Force was canceled when the Navy players decided unanimously to bow out to attend Shea's memorial and interment at Arlington.

The Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation administers a scholarship in Shea's name. There is a chapter about Shea in In the Shadow of Greatness, written by graduates of the Naval Academy.

The Kevin M. Shea Memorial Unit Award is given annually to a United States Marine Corps unit that makes exceptional contributions to the Corps.