Based: Schweinfurt, Germany
1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: May 3, 2007
Baghdad (southern part), Iraq
Married, 2 children
Gender: Male
Hometown: Sun Valley
High School: San Fernando High (San Fernando)
Foreign Country of Birth: El Salvador
Burial: Arlington National Cemetery
Whether he was jumping into a river to save a sibling, sacrificing teenage fun to help his parents make ends meet or becoming the man of the family after his dad had a stroke, Gonzalez-Iraheta was considered a hero by those who knew him.Read more about Army Sergeant Felix G. Gonzalez-Iraheta here and in this piece on Memorial Day, 2010, here.
"He was my right hand," said his mother, Reina Gonzalez. "I'm very proud to know he died a hero trying to save other people's lives."
Gonzalez-Iraheta, a 25-year-old Army sergeant from Sun Valley, was killed in a mortar attack May 3 in Baghdad. Also killed was Army Spc. John Derek Flores, 21, of Guam. They were mechanics with the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division in Schweinfurt, Germany, responsible for maintaining 200 vehicles and protecting the troops who ride in them.
Gonzalez-Iraheta, better known as "Gonzo" around the barracks, had led members of his unit to the safety of a bunker and was fatally wounded when he left to make sure no one else was in danger, the Army told the family.
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Also remembered today:
Private 1st Class Lyndon A. Marcus Jr. -- Rest In Peace
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