The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Spc.Vilmar Galarza Hernandez, 21, of Salinas, Calif., died May. 26 in Zharay, Kandahar province, Afghanistan, when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.
For more information please contact the I Corps public affairs office at 253-370-9861.
from abclocal.go.com
by Karina Rusk:
 |
| Army Spc. Vilmar Galarza Hernandez - picture: via Facebook |
SALINAS, Calif. (KGO) --
Here in the Bay Area there is another somber reminder of just what
Memorial Day is all about. One of the latest fallen soldiers is from
Salinas. The US Department of Defense announced on Monday that
21-year-old Spc. Vilmar Galarza, died in Afghanistan this weekend.
He was a devoted son and soldier serving in Operation
Enduring Freedom. Earlier on Monday at a memorial in Salinas there was a
ceremony which included the reading of 78 Monterey County soldiers
killed in Vietnam and 7 killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Now, there is
one more. Photos on Galarza's Facebook page show his radiant smile and as his friends will tell you, he proudly served his country.
"Vilmar was very proud of serving his country. He was doing what he loved," said Florencio Gonzalez, a friend.
Galarza graduated from Salinas's Everett Alvarez High School in 2008. The 21-year-old soldier died on Saturday. The Department of Defense says enemy forces attacked Galarza's unit with an IED in the Kandahar province of Afghanistan. His remains arrived at Dover Air Force Base.
The mayor of Salinas heard about the tragedy just after he attended an annual Memorial Day service on Monday. Galarza's death marks the eighth service member from Monterey County to have died in Iraq or Afghanistan.
"The purpose of the ceremony is to remind us for it to be that living, that real, that present is a particularly painful reminder," said Salinas Mayor Dennis Donohue.
Galarza's parents live in a Salinas apartment where the home's door and windows express their pride with Army stickers that read "Proud parent of a soldier" and "My son is in the U.S. Army." Inside their home, their walls are covered with photos and the scholastic achievements of their children. There a plaques for perfect attendance for Galarza and his sister who also serves in the military.
On Monday the family was out of town to receive the body of their eldest child.
"His family is having a hard time believing that he's gone. He was a very loved son," said Gonzalez.
A defense spokesperson said they weren't prepared to release any additional information about Galarza's service, such as when he entered the military or if any of his fellow soldiers were killed or injured in the attack.
---
more photos: http://www.ksbw.com/news/central-california/salinas/-/5738906/14244048/-/tkd5cg/-/index.html
Washington Time
Kabul Time
London Time
0 comments:
Post a Comment