Letters to the Editor
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Montana boy to be buried at Arlington, Texas immigrant to be buried near family at home
FORT BRAGG, N.C. - Seven soldiers killed in a vehicle accident in Iraq were members of the 82nd Airborne Division's 2nd Brigade, a military spokesman said Tuesday.
The accident in western Baghdad also injured 10 other soldiers from the unit, based at North Carolina's Fort Bragg, along with one additional detainee, said division spokesman Maj. Tom Earnhardt. Two detainees also were killed.
The soldiers were returning from a raid that took place late Sunday and early Monday when their truck "veered off an elevated highway" and fell about 30 feet, Earnhardt said.
Houston Chronicle: "Mora came to Texas City from Ecuador with his mother, Olga, when he was about 2 years old."
The family of Army Sgt. Omar Mora remembered him as a loving man who was passionate about playing soccer, fixing cars and being a soldier.
The 28-year-old Texas City resident was killed in a noncombat-related vehicle accident in Baghdad on Monday, said Robert Capetillo, his stepfather.
"We'll never see him coming through the house anymore," Capetillo said Tuesday. "That's so hard to even think about."
Capetillo said Mora was a member of the infantry unit of the 82nd Airborne Division.
"It was something he always wanted to do," he said. "He always wanted to be in the military."
His stepfather said Mora once told him that the situation in Iraq was desperate. He was especially sad about the children.
"He was sad about the way they were having to live in Iraq with the war going on," he added.
Mora's sister, Erica Capetillo, 18, will miss his big-brotherly advice and kindness.
"He was very protective over me," she said. "He wanted the best for me. He always told me to stay in school and not to drop any of my college classes."
Mora came to Texas City from Ecuador with his mother, Olga, when he was about 2 years old, his stepfather said. Capetillo said he married Olga when Mora was about 5 years old.
MILES CITY, Mont. (AP) - Staff Sergeant Yance Gray of Ismay was killed when the cargo truck he was riding in overturned in Baghdad.
It happened yesterday.
The 26-year-old Gray joined the Army in 2000.
Public information officer Major Garth Scott of the Montana National Guard says Gray was a member of the 1st Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 82nd Airborne Division, attached to the 1st Infantry Division at the time of his death.
Sergeant 1st Class Steven Klang of Baker is serving as the casualty assistance officer. He says Gray was a passenger in an M-915 five-ton cargo truck when it rolled over. Klang says he has not been told what caused the rollover.
A funeral with military honors is planned at Arlington National Cemetery. And a public memorial service is planned later in Ismay.
Gray was a graduate of Plevna High School, and the son of Richard and Karen Gray of Ismay. He is also survived by his wife and infant daughter, who live in North Carolina.