Jim, thanks for posting this. When I first read his death notice on the DOD website and saw that he was wounded back in 2005, I wondered what happened to him in the three years since then and why he died now.
Sounds like he was a helluva man and Marine and his passing is a great loss to all of us because there are not enough people like him in the world today.
Rest In Peace Sgt Merlin German 
Later that night, while I was thinking about the day's somber events, Cpl. Richard A. Mason, an infantryman with Headquarters Platoon, who, in the short time I was with the company became a good friend, told me, "You're still here, don't forget that. Tell your kids, your grandkids, what Sgt. Peralta did for you and the other Marines today."
Quote from a story written by combat correspondent LCpl Travis J. Kaemmerer who,unfortunately,died in a car crash in Virginia after returning from Iraq.