Justin A. Verdeja, Army Pfc -- Rest In Peace

Justin A. Verdeja, 20

Army, Private 1st Class

Based: Ft. Carson, Colo.

2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division

Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom

Died: June 5, 2007

Baghdad (southern part), Iraq

Single

Gender: Male

Hometown: La Puente
High School: James A. Garfield Senior High (Los Angeles)
Burial: Resurrection Cemetery, Montebello

Verdeja, slim and muscular, excelled as a triple-jumper and wide receiver at Garfield High. Friends and family recall him as a soft-spoken, incorrigible flirt who rarely missed an opportunity at school to try to impress girls with his singing.
He had more passion than talent, joked Guerrero, who said Verdeja's favorite ballad was "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith. "He sang that song and annoyed the whole world. It was horrible," she said.

Verdeja is survived by his mother and five brothers.
Read more here and here.