'Heaven' honors Marine killed in Afghanistan

SAN DIEGO — Hundreds of U.S. Marines gathered at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in late January to pay their respects to Staff Sgt. Dwight J. Morgan, a helicopter mechanic killed in a crash in Afghanistan. Now, Morgan is being honored again.

But this time Hollywood extras are standing in for the real Marines as Morgan is featured as a real character in an episode of the WB's "7th Heaven" (8 tonight, KTWB).

Why this unusual blend of fiction and reality?

One reason, according to series creator Brenda Hampton: to honor the more than three dozen members of the armed services who have died in the U.S.-led fight against terrorism. (The names of those killed in Operation Enduring Freedom will be scrolled on-screen at the end of the episode.)

Another reason is that Hampton thought that highlighting the real-life details of one of the dead would put a personal face on all of those who have lost their lives in the war.

"Those people who have volunteered to go over and who volunteer in our armed services ... sometimes their deaths don't seem real. They become merely news reports that we hear in passing," Hampton said. "I randomly chose one person and decided it would be better to honor one then none."

That person is Morgan, who was a 24-year-old from the rural Northern Californian town of Willits who married his sweetheart two weeks after graduating from high school and left for boot camp a month later.

In "The Known Soldier" episode, the youngest member of the family in "7th Heaven," Ruthie Camden (Mackenzie Rosman), becomes acquainted with Morgan through an e-mail-correspondence school project.

Through Ruthie, the Camden family soon comes to know Morgan. They learn that he's the father of a 4-year-old son, Alex, and that he and his wife, Teresa, are expecting another child. They hear about what he misses (Teresa's homemade enchiladas) and what he doesn't (pickles, onions, mushrooms and tomatoes).

In photos Morgan sends to Ruthie, the Camdens see real images from his life: Morgan feeding cake to his new bride at their wedding, hugging Teresa and Alex, and posing in his dress blues with Teresa at the annual Marine Corps ball.

The Camdens are devastated when they learn of Morgan's death in a helicopter crash during a resupply mission.

The details are true to his life. Morgan volunteered to go to Afghanistan in mid-November having only returned from an overseas mission in September. He left on the day before his wife's birthday, telling his worried mother that he was "just going to do his job."

On Jan. 20, Morgan was flying aboard a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter when it crashed due to mechanical failure outside of Kabul. Five aboard survived. Morgan and Staff Sgt. Walter "Trae" Cohee III of Mardela Springs, Md., did not.

The death shattered Morgan's family. Teresa Morgan now faces raising the couple's children alone. Morgan's mother, Mary McKim, having previously lost a child to SIDS, grieved anew. His father, Joe, still struggles with the loss. "To a degree we still feel like we're in shock," he said.

In the Hollywood account, Morgan's death leaves a circle of sadness as well. Blurring the line between fiction and reality, Morgan's real family appears at the "7th Heaven" memorial, as did several members from his Miramar-based helicopter squadron.

"It took me a little bit to think, 'Do I want to do this or not?' " said Teresa Morgan. "And then I realized that it's totally worth it, that my husband totally deserves it."

The Hollywood-produced tribute is a first for the Marine Corps, which gave its blessing to the show after being convinced that Hampton's motivations and intent were genuine. The Corps even arranged for a real Marine color guard to participate in the television memorial.

"I think people in the military will be happy to see something that's a real tribute," said Capt. Shawn Haney, a Marine Corps media liaison.

The Camdens further honor Morgan by doing charitable acts in his name: laying flowers at a military cemetery, handing out American flags and thanking veterans for their service, including real vet and guest star Ernest Borgnine.

Hampton said she tried to keep the focus on Morgan's sacrifice.

"I didn't want it to be, 'Look at this family. Look at how great they are,' " Hampton said. "I wanted it to be, 'Look at this man. Look at how great it is that he and others serve in our armed forces.' "