Fallen Marine buried at National Cemetery

PRINGFIELD, Mo. - A Marine reservist whose dream was to become a "CIA-James Bond kind of guy" and travel the world saving other Americans was buried Friday in Springfield.

Cpl. Nathaniel T. Hammond, 24, whose family lives in Brighton, was among three members of a Marine Reserve battalion killed last week in Iraq's Babil Province.

Though friends and family recalled him as mischievous, fun-loving and adventurous, they also said he had a serious side.

In a letter that his father, Tom Hammond, shared with the mourners, the fallen Marine said the reason he wanted to be in the military was to "give back to my country."

For his fatal wounds, he received a Purple Heart.

"The young man was magnificent," Tom Hammond said at the funeral. "The fight for freedom is never a joke. It has a high price."

Hammond recalled his son's accomplishments Friday as he stood next to his flag-draped casket.

He was an avid motocross racer before he turned 15 and completed his first solo flight on his 16th birthday.

He was able to speak English, Spanish and Arabic and hoped to master four other languages by his 30th birthday.

"Nathan's ideal of life is to be in the military and to be a CIA-James Bond kind of guy, who goes in, travels around, and saves America," Tom Hammond said.

"And he was saving other Marines (when he died)," his father said, noting Nathan was securing an area for his mobile strike force when a remotely detonated bomb killed him instantly.

Tom Hammond said he will never forget the pain of seeing Marine officers standing on his porch.

"They didn't have to say a word," he said.