The tragedy of our country’s foreign wars arrived on the doorsteps of Old Town Seal Beach this week.
“I don’t know of any other Seal Beach soldier that was killed in the line of duty except for Matt Manoukian,” said Nate Kranda, a neighbor of the Camp Pendelton-based Marine who was one of three Marines shot and killed Friday by an Afghan police officer. Manoukian, 29, was killed after being invited to a meeting in a Taliban stronghold to talk about security issues.
Before the meeting, he and the other marines shared a meal with the man who killed them.
Manoukian joined the Marine Corps about seven years ago. It was his fourth deployment and his second to Afghanistan. Friends and family say he was dedicated to the U.S. Marine Corps and yet, had dreams of serving his country beyond his military service.
“He had applied to law school,” said his neighbor and an eight-year-tenant of the Manoukian family, Stephanie Milano. “He planned to be a public defender. He had plans to attend law school next fall and be home for Christmas this year.”
No one could have been more proud of Manoukian’s chosen career path than his parents, Santa Clara Judge Socrates Pete Manoukian and Associate Justice Patricia Bamattre-Manoukian of the state appellate court.
The Manoukian family has owned apartments and the family’s vacations getaway home on 10th Street in Old Town Seal Beach since the 1980s. While they have lived in Seal Beach full-time for a while, the family is based in northern California and they have all been frequent visitors to their adopted home of Seal Beach, where they could find peace of mind and get away from the tensions of the world.
However, over the past eight years that Matt Manoukian was stationed at Camp Pendelton, his real home was Seal Beach, where he would drive home to every night when he was not on duty overseas.
“Matt’s parents built an apartment building with a huge summer home in the back for their family,” Kranda said. “Matt and his family are so great and caring. They would always take time out to come talk to you and talk about how proud of their son they were. I wouldn’t expect such friendliness from two judges and to be so caring and talkative. They would come down to Seal Beach probably once a month for the weekend. I think Matt considered Seal Beach his home away from home.”
According to friends, Manoukian was always one of the most popular kids in the schools he attended. He was driven toward his goals. He played football with the same pride he brought to all his endeavors. Yet he turned down an opportunity to play for UCLA to enter the Marines.
“It was always his dream,” Milano said. “But he never talked about his tour of duty. Everyone who knew him said he was very happy and when he was home he just wanted to talk about where to go on Main Street (Seal Beach) for dinner.”
He could sometimes be found rubbing elbows with other servicemen and women at Clancy’s or the Irisher, two of Seal Beach Main Street’s Irish bars that tend to attract Navy and other military personnel on leave.
Manoukian’s mother was in Seal Beach when she received the phone call from her husband, telling her of their son’s death.
“It’s been very difficult for the family,” Milano said. “The biggest thing that hit me is knowing that every young man is somebody’s brother or daddy. Until you know that person and they are your friend, you can’t possibly feel the hurt when it’s someone you know. How shocking it is when it’s one of your own.”
Among his commendations for past, exemplary service, Manoukian had received two Purple Hearts, according to the Marine Corps. He had previously served as a platoon commander for the 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment in Camp Pendleton and had also served in Iraq. He was both an airborne parachutist and a first degree Black Belt. Manoukian is survived by his parents and his two brothers, Michael and Martin. A memorial fund has been established at Matt’s high school to provide scholarship support for needy students. Contributions can be made to: St. Francis High School and in the memo portion of the check indicate “Captain Matthew Manoukian Memorial,” St. Francis High School, 1885 Miramonte Ave., Mountain View, CA, 94040.
