CAMP HANSEN, Okinawa — Those who knew him say that Capt. Warren A. Frank was living his dream of leading Marines and that he had even bigger ambitions.

Frank knew — those who served with him said — that he would one day be a battalion commander and then, eventually, become Commandant of the Marine Corps.

But his dreams were cut short on an early Tuesday morning in November when he was killed “while supporting combat operations” in the Ninevah province of Iraq. He was 26.

Six months after his death, Marines who knew him say their memories of Frank will continue to have a positive influence on the Corps.

The Marines of 5th Naval Gunfire Liaison Company, III Marine Expeditionary Force gathered Friday at the company’s headquarters on Camp Hansen to remember Frank as an exceptional Marine and family man.

At times, their anecdotes brought smiles to the face of Allison Frank, his widow, who returned to the island with their two young daughters for the ceremony.

“I am convinced he would have gone on to do great things in the Marine Corps,” Lt. Col. Clifford Weinstein, the company’s commander, told those assembled. “Warren Frank will forever be missed.”

Sgt. Maj. Gary Moran, who had known Frank since he was a second lieutenant, remembered that Frank “always had a level head.”

His voice tightened with emotion as he told the Marines in formation that Frank would always be a brother to him, one he thinks of daily.

Others extolled the infantry officer’s commitment to his wife and daughters, the youngest born just two weeks before he left for his final deployment.

“But, he never showed homesickness; he never let it affect him as a leader, as a Marine,” said Cpl. Ryan Pyle, 21, a field radio operator who was a member of Fire Control Team 4, of which Frank had been the officer in charge.

“He always took care of his Marines,” Pyle remembered.

Pyle and Cpl. Tim Bode, 24, a fire support artillery observer, said that throughout the deployment, which began in September, Frank was constantly sharing “pearls of wisdom” with his Marines, many of whom had never been deployed to Iraq and were not infantry Marines.

Frank already had served two deployments in Iraq and was constantly training the team, Bode said.

“He knew what Iraq was like — the dangers, the threats,” Bode said.

Frank truly cared for his Marines and was always urging them to stay in contact with their families in the States, Pyle said.

“Before he passed away, he was writing letters to all our parents telling them what a great job we were doing,” Pyle said. “He was just different from any other officers.”

Frank is buried in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery, but a shadow box with mementos of Frank’s career graces the entrance of 5th ANGLICO’s headquarters on Camp Hansen to remind all who enter of his sacrifice, Weinstein said.