'Bobby' Gnem, fallen Stockton Navy Corpsman, to have street named in honor

Ben Irwin, The Record
·3 min read
A large photo of Christopher "Bobby" Gnem was place next to his casket as a color guard from the Navy Operations Naval Reserve unit from Sacramento hold flags during funeral services Aug. 23 at the home of Joe Fasso in Stockton. Gnem a Stockton native, was killed in an accident during a Marine training mission in Southern California while serving as a Navy corpsman with the 5th Marine Expeditionary Unit in July.
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A street in Stockton will be renamed in honor of fallen Navy Hospital Corpsman Christopher “Bobby” Gnem.

Brookview Court will be renamed FMF DOC Gnem Court, Stockton City Council unanimously voted at the Sept. 13 council meeting. The name reflects Gnem’s Navy title. FMF stands for “Fleet Marine Forces” and DOC is the military moniker for “Hospital Corpsman.” Brookview Court serves as the entrance to Nelson Park, where Gnem, a Lincoln High School graduate, frequented.

Gnem, 22, died July 30, 2020, along with eight Marines in a training accident when a U.S. Marine Amphibious Assault Vehicle sank off the coast of Southern California. A Marine Corps investigation has since revealed the accident could have been avoided if not for a slew of missteps by Marine Corps management.

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Peter Vienna, Gnem’s stepfather, said a few months after the accident his family was contacted by one of the survivors.

“He told us that he looked back down and saw Bobby struggling not to save himself, but instead trying to save his Marines to remove their heavy body armor,” Vienna said. “When Bobby’s body was recovered, he still had all of his own body armor on at the bottom of the ocean floor.”

Vienna read a letter from one of Gnem’s friends who wrote of Gnem’s “heart of gold” and a “smile so cheesy, you couldn’t help but smile back.” Vienna described Gnem’s character through a story about a Lincoln High School student with special needs who joined the football team as a water boy who Gnem befriended.

Jade Lot, of Stockton, takes a photo of the plaque for her bother, Christopher Gnem, at the Memorial Day service Monday, May 30, 2022, at Cherokee Memorial Park and Funeral Home in Lodi.
Jade Lot, of Stockton, takes a photo of the plaque for her bother, Christopher Gnem, at the Memorial Day service Monday, May 30, 2022, at Cherokee Memorial Park and Funeral Home in Lodi.

“Bobby was never about personal accolades ... Bobby was all about the team,” Vienna said. “Bobby saw some boys bullying the young man. He stepped up to protect him … Bobby sat with him the next day at lunch and the two formed a friendship.”

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Eight years later, while (Gnem’s) mother Nancy and Vienna were at Camp Pendleton waiting for Gnem’s body to be recovered from the ocean floor.

“We they saw an Instagram post from this young man. He’d included a screenshot of the last facetime call Bobby had made to him just a few weeks prior to the accident,” Vienna said. “We had no idea Bobby had continued reaching out to that young man.”

Ricardo Urrea, a lifelong Stockton resident and one of Gnem’s judo teachers, said Gnem was an example of the resiliency of the people of Stockton.

“The example he set, a fighter from Stockton, that’s what he was,” Urrea said. “When people see that name on the street they will say, ‘Hey, that’s a fighter right there. I can be a fighter, I can be someone.”

'Remembered as a hero': Warrior walk, Feb. 27 proclamation honors fallen corpsman Christopher ‘Bobby’ Gnem

The family continues to keep the memories of those lost alive with a monthly nine-mile walk beginning at Nelson Park. The city has proclaimed Feb. 27 “Christopher ‘Bobby’ Gnem Day.” Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln, who was a Marine sergeant, gave the opening remarks in Aug. 2020 when Gnem was laid to rest with full military honors. He said he witnessed the community come together for Gnem in ways he couldn’t imagine.

A group of about 30 people walk down Shadowbrook Drive in Stockton during the 9 Miles for 9 Heroes walk in Stockton. The walk remembers Navy corpsman Christopher "Bobby" Gnem of Stockton, who was killed in a training accident along with 8 Marines in Southern California.
A group of about 30 people walk down Shadowbrook Drive in Stockton during the 9 Miles for 9 Heroes walk in Stockton. The walk remembers Navy corpsman Christopher "Bobby" Gnem of Stockton, who was killed in a training accident along with 8 Marines in Southern California.

“I’m a Marine. Once a Marine always a Marine ... I know firsthand the type of training and sacrifice Bobby went through and committed to as a Navy Corpsman,” Lincoln said. “Navy Corpsmans are Marines. They earn that eagle, globe and anchor to become part of the most elite fighting force in the world.”

Lincoln closed in reading Stockton Marine Corps Club’s Ret. Gunnery Sergeant Marvin Hernandez Garcia’s letter:

“Marines are usually heard to say, ‘God makes angels and Navy Corpsman,’” Lincoln read. “(Bobby) had the makings of a hero, and he died a hero."

Record reporter Ben Irwin covers Stockton and San Joaquin County government. He can be reached at birwin@recordnet.com or on Twitter @B1rwin. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at recordnet.com/subscribenow. 

This article originally appeared on The Record: 'Bobby' Gnem, fallen Stockton Navy Corpsman, to have street named in honor