IRAQ: Marine killed in Iraq 'accepted the risk,' GOP convention speaker says

Lost amid news coverage of other speeches at Thursday night's finale of the Republican National Convention was a tribute to Marine Maj. Megan McClung, who was killed in December 2006 by a roadside bomb in Ramadi.

McClung, who grew up in Mission Viejo and graduated from the Naval Academy, was a public affairs officer assigned to escort reporters around Anbar province. She was the first female Marine officer killed in combat.

"I tell you about Megan because it is important that we remember the sacrifices that our brave men and women are making every day,"  retired Marine Lt. Gen. Carol Mutter told the GOP gathering.

McClung was proud to serve her country and "accepted the risk," Mutter said.

The Women Marines Assn. and the McClung family will soon award the first annual Maj. Megan McClung memorial scholarship.

Here's a link to The Times' obituary on Megan McClung.

-- Tony Perry, in San Diego

Photo: Maj. Megan McClung. Credit: Associated Press