Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan, who was killed in a March 1 drone attack in Kuwait, was a ‘surrogate dad’ to so many in his Iowa-based reserve unit that some are now raising money to help dozens of his soldiers determined to attend his funeral in California later this month.
One of the organizers is Connor Kuehl, who said he was aimless when he enlisted in the Army in 2013 and met Marzan. Kuehl’s father wasn’t at home at the time, he said, and the senior soldier became the father figure who had been missing in his life.
“He found out where you were in life, and he would literally sit down on a white board and help you paint a picture of where your life was: What’s your family situation; what’s your education, your career, your goals for military career, civilian career; what do you want your life to look like, and what does it look like now,” Kuehl told Task & Purpose. “I’ve used that framework ever since then.”
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A Signal Corps data operations warrant officer, Marzan, 54, was one of six Army Reserve soldiers killed when an Iranian drone struck a U.S. facility at Port Shuaiba, Kuwait. All six soldiers were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command, a Reserve unit based in Des Moines, Iowa. The 103rd, a 7,000-soldier unit spread across six states, provides logistical support for food, water, ammunition, and other supplies and equipment, according to the Army Reserve.
The drone attack is under investigation.
Travel costs for final goodbye
Marzan’s death has revealed how wide his influence was across the 103rd. Ashley Kopf, whose husband served with Marzan, said that between 60 and 75 current and former service members have indicated that they would like to attend Marzan’s funeral.
Of those, she said, between 25 and 30 have said they would face financial difficulties making the trip.
To help, Kuehl and Kopf have organized online fundraising efforts to defray travel costs for soldiers and civilians, with a goal of $65,000. Any money beyond that will go to the families of all six fallen 103rd soldiers, along with some held back to defray costs for troops still deployed who want to visit the gravesites when they return.
Working with Marzan’s family, Kuehl launched a GoFundMe. The non-profit group Salute To The Fallen is also raising funds for the unit.
‘He was the first phone call’
Kopf’s husband, Sgt. 1st Class William Kopf, served with Marzan in the 103rd Sustainment Command. She described Marzan and his wife, Tina, as the unit’s “parents.”
“They provided a place for soldiers that were away from home, that didn’t have family there, the opportunity to have a family there in Iowa,” Kopf told Task & Purpose. “They opened their home for family gatherings, baby showers, and wedding receptions, and all sorts of those things. Plenty of 103rd cookouts and things happened there.”
As the “surrogate dad” for many people in the unit, Marzan was often the first person whom soldiers called whenever they needed advice about their careers and other issues, Kopf said.
“I know for my husband, he was the first phone call. If you were facing something in your career or needed to make a decision, his first response was always: ‘Let me check with Marzan. Let me see what Marzan says,’” Kopf said.
The number of soldiers whom Marzan mentored, said Kuehl, has been “mind-boggling.”
Marzan, he said, seemed to believe in soldiers before they even believed in themselves.
“He didn’t care if you didn’t think you had potential or if you had tried to set goals before,” Kuehl said. “He was just very motivated to see others succeed around him.”
Marzan’s death has left “a lot of people hurting for his loss,” said Kuehl, who added it would be meaningful for them to have some sense of closure.
“He taught me leadership and he taught me accountability, and that everybody should live up to their potential – and if you aren’t trying to live up to your potential, that’s shame on you,” Kuehl said. “Everybody should always push themselves to live up to their potential. It’s greater than they think.”
