Anthony Lam wanted to be like his father and serve his country in the military.

His father, Kiet Lam, was a captain in the South Vietnamese Army. He escaped Saigon in 1975.

Anthony and his best friend, Robert Lloyd III, both U.S. Grant High School students, planned to join the Marines after graduating next spring. Both wanted to train in San Diego and Anthony had already enlisted, said their school instructor and former Marine, retired Maj. Dennis Weber.

Both were also known as student leaders at Grant in south Oklahoma City.