USMC Cpl David Sonka

David Michael Sonka was born on November 28,1989 and raised in Aurora and Parker, Colorado. In Parker, David attended Pine Lane Elementary, Sierra Middle School, and graduated from Chaparral High School in 2008. Always a Patriot, he often spoke about Serving His Country after the attacks on September 11, 2001. He debated joining the Army Reserve and Air Force, before finally deciding become a Marine. One week after his 18th birthday, he signed on to the delayed enlistment program to do just that. He officially enlisted in the Corps on August 11, 2008, completing boot camp at MCRD San Diego in November. In 2009, he graduated Military Police school in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri in April and then went on to K9 school in San Antonio, Texas. After he graduated K9 in July, he was assigned to Third Marine Expeditionary Force K9 in 29 Palms, California as a Patrol Explosive Detector Dog handler. He was paired with a Military Working Dog named Falco. Together, they were deployed in May, 2011 to Afghanistan, supporting multiple Special Operations Teams in Helmand Province. They returned home safely in December. In June 2012 he was hand selected to become a dog handler for MARSOC, Marine Special Operations Command, at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. He re-enlisted in the Marines in October 2012 to accept the position and was paired with and trained his new dog, a Multi-Purpose Canine named Flex. They both completed the MPC training courses in December, 2012. On March 31st, 2013, David and MPC Flex were deployed to Farah Province, Afghanistan with Marine Special Operations Team 8223 in support of Golf Company Team 3. On May 4th, 2013 David and Flex were providing overwatch for a meeting between SOF and Afghan military personnel, when an Afghan Army soldier opened fire, mortally wounding them both and another Marine, Eric Damon Christian. Anecdotes.... Pokemon, Titanic, shirts with numbers, Tink, Batman, boop, Stop Pre, Power Rangers, Harry Potter, Olympic Torch, Captain America, oatmeal cream pies, numnuts, Sweet Ride of the Month. David enjoyed hunting, camping, running, grilling, watching Denver Broncos football, and spending time with his friends and family alongside his wife Torey and their three personal dogs. His passion for the Marines and for being a K9 handler was evident in his dedication and hard work over the course of his career, sometimes sleeping with the dogs in their kennels and training on his days off. Working with dogs brought David so much joy. He spent lots of time teaching his personal dogs how to do agility courses and even sniff out gunpowder. He volunteered at local shelters, training dogs to make them better adoption candidates and even just taking them on walks. He was known for saying "Anyone want to grab a wrap?", cajoling his fellow Marines to start work early. David rose to the rank of Corporal. His MOS, or Military Occupational Specialties were: 5811 Military Police, 5812 Military Working Dog Handler, 8071 SOCS-D Multi-Purpose Canine Handler. His personal Military awards and decorations were: Purple Heart, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement, Combat Action, Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation with one bronze star, Marine Corps Good Conduct, National Defense Service, Afghanistan Campaign with two Bronze Stars, Global War on Terrorism, Sea Service Deployment, NATO/ISAF, Marine Corps Rifle Expert (four) and Marine Corps Pistol Expert. The MARSOC K9 Training Facility at Camp Lejeune was named after David and Dedicated on September 7, 2015. The Town of Parker, Colorado named it's Dog Park after David. It was Dedicated on June 14, 2017. David and Flex were selected for inclusion in the Second Honor Bell at Pikes Peak National Cemetery on March 2, 2025.