PORT ANGELES — A Navy Seabee from Port Angeles who died of complications of malaria caught in Africa will be remembered as a loyal brother and son who loved his country, his family said.
Joshua Dae Ho Carrell, 23, died of complications of malaria on Saturday at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.
“He was my gift from God,” said Rhonda Carrell, his mother.
Mr. Carrell was a third class petty officer with Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 3.
He was building a hospital in Monrovia, Liberia, with his fellow Seabees — the naval construction force that carries the motto: “We build, we fight.”
About 400 military personnel attended a service for Petty Officer Carrell on Tuesday at Naval Station Rota in Spain.
After the service, his body was flown to Dover, Del., en route to Port Angeles.
Petty Officer Carrell will be laid to rest in Port Angeles on Monday or Tuesday with a full military honor guard. The family has not finalized the details.
“We’re trying to decide where,” said Shelly Carrell, his sister.
The memorial will feature a motorcycle caravan from Seattle, taps played on bagpipes and a 21-gun salute.
“He’s going to have full military honors,” said Sandy Sinnes, his godmother.
Mr. Carrell is survived by his mother, sister and brother, Jason. All three in his immediate family are from Port Angeles.
“Our heart goes out to Petty Officer Carrell’s family as they suffer the extraordinary loss of their loved one,” said Capt. Martin Beck, task force commander.
“We express our deepest condolences to Joshua’s family and will keep them in our prayers. The United States Navy has lost a brave sailor and loved son and brother.”
Navy officials have not confirmed whether Petty Officer Carrell had been taking anti-malarial medication.
“We don’t know that yet,” Shelly Carrell said. “His boss said he had taken [malaria] medication.”
The death remained under investigation Tuesday.
Lt. Cmdr. Michael Cooper, an epidemiologist with the U.S. Army Public Health Command in Europe, told Stripes.com that he is unaware of another malaria-related death in the U.S. military in the past two years.
‘Rare event’
“Generally speaking, it’s a rare event,” Cooper told the U.S. military news source.
Carrell had Falciparum malaria, the most dangerous form of the mosquito-borne disease that kills more than one million people every year.
Most of the victims are young children in Africa, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Petty Officer Carrell was hospitalized on Dec. 22. He died four days later after his kidneys and liver had failed.
The sailor’s journey to the Navy was a long one.
He was adopted from Korea when he was 14 months old. His biological parents were college students in Seoul, South Korea, who decided not to get married.
“He lived with a foster parent,” said Rhonda Carrell, whose late husband, Dean Carrell, adopted the family’s third child.
Dean Carrell was an F-4 Navy pilot stationed at the former Naval Air Station Miramar, Calif. He died after an extended illness when his adopted son was 3.
The boy helped his two older siblings and mother cope with the loss, Rhonda Carrell recalled.
Lee Sinnes, former Port Angeles High School head basketball coach, took the youth under his wing, making him his godson the team manager.
Mr. Carrell also played offensive tackle for the Port Angeles Roughrider football team.
Off the field, he was busy chasing bigger goals. Mr. Carrell became a U.S. citizen when he was 16 and graduated from Port Angeles High School in 2005.
“Rhonda helped him get his U.S. citizenship,” Sandy Sinnes said.
‘Proud to be an American’
“He was so proud to be an American, and so proud to be in the Navy.”
After enlisting in 2006, Petty Officer Carrell served a tour in Iraq and helped build railroad stations.
“He wanted to go in to serve,” Rhonda Carrell said. “He was very proud of his country, even if he wasn’t born here.”
The song “Proud to be an American” resonated with her son, his mother said.
“He told me he’d never been happier,” Sinnes added.
“He loved it. He was thinking about making a career of it.”
When he wasn’t overseas, Petty Officer Carrell would ride his motorcycle on Sundays with his buddies in Southern California, where he was stationed.
“He loved his motorcycle,” Shelly Carrell said.
Sandy Sinnes described her godson as a “motorcycle addict.”
“He was full of life,” said Shelly Carrell, 32.
“He touched everybody he talked to. He made a lot of friends.”
Shelly Carrell said her brother was family-oriented and a good uncle. He loved to go tubing at Lake Sutherland and spend time with his friends and family, she said.
After he fell ill, Navy personnel stayed by Rhonda Carrell’s side in the intensive care unit.
“The Navy takes care of its own,” she said. “I had six or seven Navy guys with me the whole time.”
Added Sandy Sinnes: “Josh was never alone. It just shows you what a wonderful country we have.”
Petty Officer Carrell’s Facebook page was filled with more than 100 humorous anecdotes and photos of him goofing around with his friends, Sandy Sinnes said.
“He was quite the character,” she said.
Shelly Carrell said her brother had a great sense of humor and was always willing to help others.
“He was very special to me,” Shelly Carrell said.
“He was the baby in our family.
“He was one of the best gifts that ever came to us.”
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
