WPIX -- YONKERS, N.Y. (WPIX) - A Marine from Westchester County has been killed in Afghanistan. Military officials confirm that Lance Cpl. John J. Malone, 24, died Thursday in Farah province.

He was a machine gunner, based in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, and assigned to 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force. He'd only been in Afghanistan since May.

Malone enlisted with the Marine Corps in February 2007; he was in Iraq last year. He took part in numerous pre-deployment training exercises in Hawaii and California prior to each deployment.

Malone was highly decorated; his medals include the Purple Heart, National Defense Service, Afghanistan Campaign, Iraq Campaign and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medals. He was also honored with two Sea Service Deployment Ribbons.

==Another news story==

The (Westchester, N.Y.) Journal News (Hannan Adely and Hoa Nguyen) -- A 24-year-old Marine killed in action in Afghanistan on Thursday was a Gorton High School graduate and former Mahopac resident who “would light up the room,” family and friends said.

Lance Cpl. John J. Malone, who grew up in Mahopac before moving to Yonkers to attend high school, died of gunshot wounds while on patrol in Afghanistan, according to family and friends who said they were notified late Thursday. The Pentagon said he died in Farah province, Afghanistan.

Malone, a young man who loved music, often wore a smile on his face and was committed to his family and serving his country, had a way about him that earned many friends.

“John is a great guy,” said Zahara Majeed, 21, of Yonkers, a friend who knew Malone when he and his sister attended Gorton. “You would never have a bad day because he would always make you smile.”

Malone, who after graduation worked at the Pathmark store on Central Avenue and later enlisted, was proud of his military service and the opportunities that came with being in the Marines, friends said.

“He loved it,” Majeed said. “It changed him. He got to see the world, something that he was never going to do if he never got into the military.”

But most of all, Malone, who last year served in Iraq, wanted to help protect his country and family, friends said.

“He had family in the Marines, so what he said was, ‘Basically, they’re trying to kill my family,’ and he wanted to go and protect people he loved and what not — the country and everything,” said Josh Blumenstetter, 24, a friend who knew Malone when he lived in Mahopac.

Malone had come to Mahopac to live with his grandmother, and, despite being new to the area, he fit in easily, said Charles Blumenstetter, Josh’s father.

“He was one of the most popular guys in town. Everybody loved him,” Charles Blumenstetter said. “He was just a polite young man and very friendly, and all I can say is I was talking to one of the kids this morning and they’re all very upset. They said John would just light up the room.”

On Tuesday, Josh Blumenstetter got an e-mail from Malone saying he had had a lot of close calls while serving in Afghanistan and was anxious to come home. He was due to come home in several weeks.

“When he was in Iraq, it seemed like he felt a lot more safe and everything seemed better,” he said.

Then, Blumenstetter got a text message from Malone’s brother Darryl at 5:15 p.m. Thursday saying, “John’s gone.”

Malone was a member of the 2nd Battalion , 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, based at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay.

Marco Kilcawley, 22, of Columbia, S.C., served in the same company as Malone in Afghanistan but was sent back to Hawaii a couple of months ago for medical reasons.

“We went to Iraq together. We went to Afghanistan together,” Kilcawley said. “He was an all-around good Marine. He made everyone happy, even when we were around the field cold and miserable.”

During his free time, Malone would listen to songs that he had written and produced, and enjoyed hanging out with his friends, Kilcawley said. Like his friends in the company, he was torn over whether to quit the military or sign up for another tour, Kilcawley said. This last tour in Afghanistan was more difficult than their other assignments, Kilcawley said, adding that he did not know the circumstances surrounding Malone’s death.

“Afghanistan is more dangerous,” he said. “The Taliban over there are a little more braver in trying to attack us.”