Based: Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii
3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: June 14, 2006
Haditha, Iraq
Single
Gender: Male
Hometown: Hemet
High School: Hemet High (Hemet)
Burial: Riverside National Cemetery, Riverside
-JessicaMike my brother was the best brothers i ever had, i have so many good Memory's from when we were just kids to teenagers. I dred everyday with missing him, and will never forget the day i found out my brother a Marine who was wise,strong ,loving and caring had passed away. I was in my house and heard the door bell ring and answerd the door not knowing who it was and there stood 2 marines and 1 navy soldier and didnt think of it untill i saw the red 4 to 5 inch folder in the hands of one marine, and right there and then i knew right away that something bad had happend to my brother. One of the marines asked me to call my mom and i really didnt want to call her and make her day a living hell but i had no choice but to call her with bad news. A marine dreding to tell my parents the bad news took me to pick up my 3 other siblings from school i didnt know what to expect when they onced steped into the car, my brothers and sister kept asking me what was going on,i sat in the car and said "nothing" i sat there in silence and cryed and cryed trying not to show my brothers and sister i was crying. Once we got home i walked into the house and saw my mom and dad sitting down together and i saw my mom bawling out tears and looking at us and i just looked at my mom and cryed even more knowing my brother wasnt with us anymore, we all sat in the living room as a family, i saw and heard the marine say "im sorry for your loss" the marine was trying not to cry. I felt like there was going to be no tomorow after he said that. My brother who one was 6 didnt understand what was going on until my mom told him. I remeber him saying "why is Michael dead?" i cryed and cryed knowing that he will be asking for a long time until he understood that his older brother got killed in iraq. Until this day i remeber every second of it and will NEVER forget that day on June 14th 2006 when we all as a family found out the bad news. I will always miss Michael, my brother who was always there for me and told me to stay in school and that he wanted to see me graduate one day but that day never came for him to see me so i took a pin with a picture of him and pinned it on my shaw and that same day of my graduation he got to walk with me and i knew he was there. But there are so many memorys in my heart of years and years we had together as kids and as siblings.Mike i love you and will never forget you, you will always be in my heart and i will never forget that day u asked me for Kool-aid and Menudo in one of my dreams. I love you and i hope to see you soon.
— Jessica Estrella
August 31, 2009 at 12:36 a.m.
Estrella is survived by a large family, including five younger brothers and sisters for whom he would baby-sit while his mother and father worked.
His sister Sasha, 18, said her brother was her best friend, whom she would seek out for advice about boys and other teenage issues.
"I always used to talk to him about everything," she said. "He would always tell me, 'Don't worry; you've got to keep your feet up and keep walking.' He would tell me that he would always be there for me and support me."
Estrella also is survived by about 30 cousins. Last summer, most took a trip to San Felipe, Mexico, where they sunbathed and rode all-terrain vehicles on the beach.
"It was just spending family time together," said cousin Vanessa Lozano, 19. "He was a good cousin and a good friend."
Read the LA Times article about Marine Corporal Michael A. Estrella.
Find more about Corporal Estrella at LA IndyMedia,
the Iraq Page
and Fallen Heroes.
Visit Corporal Michael A. Estrella's Guest Book.
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| Portrait of Marine Corporal Michael A. Estrella from Fallen Heroes Project |
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