Feb. 3, 2004--Dennis S. O’Brien, 35, a 1995 UD graduate living in Norfolk, Va., died Jan. 31.

A reporter for The Virginian-Pilot, he covered the war in Iraq as an embedded reporter with a Marine unit from January through June 2003. He was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his work, which was reprinted in newspapers around the country.

A New Jersey native, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1987. A veteran of Operation Desert Storm, he received an honorable discharge in 1992.

Mr. O’Brien attended UD from 1993-95, graduating magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a bachelor’s degree in history. He received a fellowship to the University of Maryland, where he graduated with a master’s degree in public affairs reporting.

After interning at the Chicago Tribune for a year, he joined the Daily Press in Newport News, Va. He then went to The Virginian-Pilot in 2000 as a business reporter and later became a military reporter.

He is survived by his wife, Sue, and their daughter, Annemarie, 2.

Memorial donations may be made to Ghent United Methodist Preschool in Norfolk, Va.