Though fallen Marine Ivan Wilson was rebellious at times, he was a 'happy and well-loved young man' with many friends

Marine Pfc. Ivan Wilson fought his own demons when he wasn't pulling combat tours in the Middle East.

The 22-year-old from Clearlake was famously rebellious and had a drinking problem that got him into trouble, including his arrest earlier this year on a flight home for leave, said his mother, Denise Wilson.

But he was good-hearted and beloved by members of his unit at Twentynine Palms, who nicknamed him "Willie" and "Juggernaut." He died Monday in Afghanistan's Helmand province after a roadside bomb exploded.

"He had his good days and bad days," said his mother, who clasped his dog tag as she read a prepared statement in the kitchen of her apartment. "Overall, he was a very happy and well-loved young man with a promising future."

Wilson was Lake County's first service member to die in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He served in Iraq last year with the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, and had been in Afghanistan since April.

His body was in Dover, Del., awaiting transport to Clearlake for military burial, his mother said. The timing of his return and funeral services is not yet known, she said.

Wilson's mother raised him in the same Clearlake apartment complex where she lives today with his 19-year-old sister, Jackie, and 3-year-old half-brother, Nathaniel. His father, Christopher Wilson, lives across town.

He attended Lower Lake High School, playing football and wrestling before getting expelled and re-enrolling in Clearlake Community School, where he graduated in 2004, his mother said.

He spent part of a term at the College of the Redwoods in Eureka and attempted to hitchhike to Alaska with a buddy to work on fishing boats. He ended up in a tent city in Seattle and eventually returned home, working briefly at Wal-Mart, his mother said.

Throughout, Wilson was battling alcohol and drugs, she said.

He joined the Marines in September 2005 when "other things weren't working out in his world," she said. "He felt it was the best decision he made in a long time," she said, wiping back tears.

After basic training at Camp Pendleton, Wilson was stationed at Twentynine Palms. The unit was deployed to Iraq from January to August of last year.

"I worried every day," she said. "He kept telling me he would be OK."

Wilson didn't talk much about the experience, the family said, but continued to drink, sometimes attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

When he flew into Sacramento International Airport in February on leave, his mother came to pick him up, but Wilson never emerged from the plane. He had been arrested.

"Honestly, I don't know what happened," she said. "He drank too much."

The last time she spoke to him was July 10 in a phone call to Afghanistan. He said he was angry about something. "He said, 'Momma, when I get home I'll tell you everything,' " she said.

He never got the chance. His mother was awakened early last week by a knock on the front door. Two Marine sergeants were standing outside, there to deliver the bad news.

"When I opened the door and saw the looks on their faces, I knew," she said.

She also said that she has been informed that her son will be promoted posthumously to lance corporal.

E-mails from Marines who served with Wilson have poured in since his death, confirming what his family knew about his personal struggles but also revealing many successes.

A note from his squad leader, A.W. Tombleson, called Wilson an "excellent Marine and excellent person" who saved his life in a firefight on the roof of a building a few weeks before his death.

Tombleson said Wilson risked getting shot to lay down a screen of M-16 and grenade fire that allowed him to escape, continuing "until I had to practically drag him off the roof."

"I never got to pay Willy back for saving my life or even thank him," the squad leader said in the e-mail. "I hope that someday you will let me pay back that debt."

Another Marine, Francisco Velas-quez, wrote that "regardless of his actions on planes or the need to get naked and run around," Wilson was well respected. Velasquez said Wilson helped him on hikes in infantry school "when my little short legs would try to quit on me."

"He would say, 'Just hold onto my backpack and I'll help you,' which I did a few times," the man wrote.

A corpsman from Sacramento, "Doc" Daniel, said he was present when Wilson died. He said he and others tried to save Wilson but "the Lord had a different plan."

The two were going to fly home together at the end of the tour with a third Marine.

"Ma'am, Willie was really strong at the end and I prayed for him," the medic said. "We will miss him, but I know he's in a better place."

You can reach Staff Writer

Paul Payne at 762-7297 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com.