Two families who live far away from each other came together to form two scholarships in memory of Lance Cpl. Eric Herzberg, a Severna Park soldier who was killed in Iraq.

The 20-year-old Marine was killed in combat Oct. 21 in Al Anbar Province, Iraq.

“I know that I can do something to honor his memory and his life. It really helps me to accept that he is gone. It’s a healing process for me,” said Eric Herzberg’s father, who shares the same name.

Herzberg said he couldn’t sleep after his son’s death, so he stayed up nights e-mailing people who had left sympathetic words in the guest book of the Baranco & Sons Funeral Home Web site.

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Through the site, he met Faith Carmen, the Florida mother of one of Herzberg’s best friends and a fellow soldier in Iraq, Justin Carmen.

They decided to start two $5,000 scholarships, one in Florida for troubled eighth and ninth graders, and one in Maryland for Severna Park High School seniors, according to the Web site for the scholarships, www.ericwherzberg.com.

Justin Carmen will give out the scholarships in April, Herzberg said.

Donations received for the Florida scholarship will be matched by the Hillsborough Educational Foundation, a nonprofit serving the public school district of Hillsborough County, Fla. Winners of the Florida scholarship will be aided by a mentor who will help them work towards getting into college, according to the site.

Carmen was not available for comment.

The scholarship application includes an essay with three requirements. Applicants must offer knowledge of Lance Cpl. Eric Herzberg, who can be researched on the Internet. They must also provide a definition of service and share plans to serve others during their life.

“Eric’s heart was so big. That was what amazed me about him, as a teenager, he had a passion for serving other people. He wanted to go to Iraq right away and be on the front lines so he could help others,” said Herzberg.

The scholarship recipients will be selected annually by the Eric W. Herzberg scholarship committee. The scholarship committee will consist of at least three members of the Herzberg family to include Eric’s father.

lgreenback@baltimoreexaminer.com