Army Spc. Clay P. Farr

When he was a boy, Clay P. Farr colored everything camouflage, until his kindergarten teacher broke the news to him that camouflage isn't really a color.

"He was born a little soldier," said his mother, Carrol Alderete.

Farr, 21, of Bakersfield, Calif., was killed Feb. 26 in Baghdad by a roadside bomb. He was a 2003 high school graduate and was assigned to Fort Drum.

Farr didn't let personal tragedy distract him from his drive to serve. In February 2004, shortly after he started boot camp, his fiancee was killed in a car accident.

But when the Army wanted to stop his training so he could grieve and start again in six months, he refused.

"He volunteered to go to Iraq immediately. I asked him not to do that, but he said no, he needed to defend his country," said his father, Patrick Farr. "He wanted to get into that fight."

Farr was a prankster who enjoyed practical jokes and had many friends. His father remembered that when his son was in the seventh grade, he brought his yearbook home and told his father to flip to any page in the book.

"I've got a friend on every page," he recalled his son saying.

Marine 2nd Lt. Almar L. Fitzgerald

Lt. Fitzgerald

At 5-foot-8, Almar L. Fitzgerald was one of the smallest on his high school football team. But Fitzgerald, a cornerback, never backed away from a challenge.

"He always trusted his technique and did what he practiced," said Mark Cagle, who was the team's defensive coordinator. "He always gave his best."

Fitzgerald, 23, of Lexington, S.C., died Feb. 21 at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany from wounds received three days earlier from an explosive in Anbar province. He was assigned to Twentynine Palms.

Fitzgerald graduated from The Citadel in 2004, serving as executive officer of Company M, 3rd Battalion, during his senior year. He also helped recruit donors to the college.

"He had such a contagious personality," said Rachel Meuser, assistant director of annual giving. "He genuinely cared about people."

A self-described video game geek, "Fitz," as he was known, also had an unusual way to steel himself before disciplining his Marines. "I watch a couple episodes of 'The OC,'" he said to Christian Lowe, a friend. "It just always brings my emotions to the surface."

He is survived by his mother, Sharon Foster.

Army Capt. Anthony R. Garcia

Capt. Garcia

Anthony R. Garcia was about to be promoted to major, and his wife planned to surprise him with a gift: his dream car, a Chevrolet Corvette.

"He was very outgoing and just the life of the party," said his sister-in-law, Veronica Johnson.

Garcia, 48, of Fort Worth, Texas, died Feb. 17 from a gunshot wound in Tikrit. He was assigned to Fort Campbell and was on his third tour.

He graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1984 and joined the Army in 1989. He later completed the graduate program at Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tenn., in 1996, before being certified as a physician assistant, specializing in aviation medicine.

His father, Monico Garcia, said his son always made him proud, even when he was a child. "He accomplished so many things. He was in Boy Scouts, Little League, the chess club in high school. He also had a private pilot's license."

An avid runner and weightlifter, Garcia had run several half marathons. He served in the first Gulf War as well as in Afghanistan.

He is survived by his wife, Doris; a daughter, Kelly; and a son, Garrick.

Army Spc. Felipe J. Garcia-Villareal

When Felipe J. Garcia-Villareal was 15, his father brought him and his brother Nestor to Virginia from Bolivia. Felipe joined the ROTC and worked part time at a Home Depot.

After graduation, both brothers joined the Marines, Nestor in 1998 and Felipe in 1999.

"To him and to me, to join the service was a form of repaying this country for all the opportunities that we were given," Nestor said. They both became U.S. citizens.

Garcia-Villareal, 26, of Burke, Va., died Feb. 12 at Washington Hospital Center in Washington of injuries sustained in Ramadi on Feb. 9 when his tent caught fire. He was assigned to Bamberg, Germany.

"He was so strong," said his brother. "According to the doctors, he was supposed to be dead in Iraq. And he had the will to come all the way back here and say goodbye to his family."

When his tour was up in 2003, Felipe decided to move to Bolivia to study dentistry. There, he bought his sisters a house and married his longtime sweetheart, Magaly.

But unhappy with civilian life, he returned to the United States and joined the Army. "It was in his blood," said his brother.

Marine Cpl. Orville Gerena

Orville Gerena was remembered as a man of character Ñ he even once corrected a commissioned officer.

"We were on patrol in Hit, and Gerena noticed a major straying away from the formation by himself," said Lance Cpl. Jeffery S. McCarty. "Knowing the danger, he immediately said, 'Sir, get over here,' and took him to a nearby Humvee. It was funny at the time, but that's how he would look out for people, no matter who you were, private to major."

Gerena, 21, of Virginia Beach, Va., was killed Feb. 6 by an explosion in Hit. Born in Puerto Rico, he enlisted in the Marines in 2002 and was assigned to Camp Lejeune.

Gerena was always talking about his wife, Nora. "I always wondered how, after a four-hour foot patrol, and writing up the report for an hour, he would find another hour or two to write a letter to his wife everyday," said McCarty.

McCarty served with Gerena last year in Iraq. After years of shared hardships and joys, McCarty said, "Gerena was more than just a friend; he was a brother, our brother. They say the Lord works in mysterious ways, but this is something I'll never understand."

Army Staff Sgt. Gregson G. Gourley

Gregson G. Gourley spent nearly 17 years in the service of his country but rarely talked about it with his father, who retired as a lieutenant colonel in the Army.

"When you've been there, done that, you're very slow to talk about it," said his father, Jerome Gourley. "We never talked about the Army."

Gourley, 38, of Salt Lake City, died Feb. 22 when a bomb detonated near his patrol in Hawijah. He was assigned to Fort Campbell and was on his second tour.

"He was a very gentle person," his grandmother Adena Gourley said. "He had a great desire to be an outstanding soldier and an outstanding man. He wanted to be a father his children could be proud of."

Gourley hoped to go into law enforcement. He received two associate degrees from Salt Lake Community College and studied to receive a license to work as a private detective.

He is survived by his wife, Collette, and their four children, including three sons and an infant, Alexa.

"He just adored her," said his father. "He was just so pleased with her. Of course, he got to know her for about 60 days after she was born."

Army Spc. William S. Hayes III

In an odd twist, William S. Hayes III and his father, who is retired from the Air Force, spent two days together in Iraq when the elder Hayes was temporarily assigned to the Army.

"He was the most wonderful kid you've ever met," said his father, William Hayes Jr.

Hayes, 23, of Slidell, La., died Feb. 5 of a non-combat related injury in Baghdad. He was a 2001 high school graduate, on his second tour and was assigned to Fort Hood.

Hayes was a lifelong resident of Slidell and a 2001 high school graduate. He started his initial training at Fort Knox as an M-1 armor crewman. In Iraq, he was a tank driver and munitions loader.

Hayes ended his first tour in the spring of 2004, his father said, and returned to Fort Hood. He returned to Iraq in December, his father said. Hayes was due to get out of the Army in September, after a four-year enlistment.

He also is survived by his mother, Debra Gafford Hayes; brother, Elvis Jackson Hayes; and sisters, Jennifer Ann Hayes and Michelle Marie Hayes.

Army Sgt. David L. Herrera

David L. Herrera won't see his second daughter, but his widow is sure he would have loved her as much as 3-year-old Emma.

"He loved to hear Emma laugh and just to see her smile and to see her happy. He was all about family and taking care of his family," said Tonya Herrera, who is expecting another daughter, Gabriella Lee. "I was glad he was happy. He knew he was so loved."

Herrera, 26, of Oceanside, Calif., died Jan. 28 in Baghdad from a roadside bomb. He was assigned to Fort Campbell.

Herrera was known as a friendly, outgoing young man who had flashy clothes and a quick wit. He was someone who would always rent a limousine and have flowers on hand when going on important dates.

Herrera joined the Army in March 1998, a month after his older brother, Marcus, entered the Army. From then on, the two brothers pretty much followed each other during their military careers. The two used to practice boxing as kids in the gym set up by their father, Sgt. Maj. Marcos Herrera.

"He was just a great, all-around guy, and if you needed something he would always help you. He always stood by his soldiers," Marcus Herrera said.

Army Spc. Patrick W. Herried

Spc. Herried

The last conversation Patrick W. Herried and his mother shared was full of giggles and love. She asked where his unit was going, and he said 10 miles from the border.

Rita Herried persisted: "'What longitude and latitude? Tell it to me, baby,'" she said. "He laughed. 'I can't tell you too much.' You could hear the other guys. 'What are they laughing at?' I said. He said, 'They can hear you.'"

Rita Herried said her last words to her son were, "I love you," but he could never say it back.

Herried, 29, of Sioux Falls, S.D., was killed Feb. 6 by a roadside bomb in Rawah. He graduated high school in 1994 and was assigned to Fort Wainwright.

Rita Herried said her son loved football. He played as a defensive end in high school, cheered for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and also played the game on his Nintendo.

"It was all football games," she said.

Herried also was a fan of Metallica and Tony Hawk. He enjoyed skateboarding and mountain biking. His mother said he would bike around town up until the first snow.

He also is survived by his father, Bill, of Bemidji, Minn.

Army Sgt. Curtis T. Howard II

Edward Klum, an assistant high school basketball coach, remembers Curtis T. Howard II taking responsibility for a loss in a big game.

"Right after the game, he came up to me and said, 'Coach. I didn't play hard enough,'" Klum said. "That's just the kind of kid he was."

Howard, 32, of Ann Arbor, Mich., was killed Feb. 22 near Balad when a bomb detonated near his vehicle. He was a 1991 high school graduate, was assigned to Fort Carson and was on his second tour.

"He was very caring about what was going on and conscientious about his academics so that he would be prepared for whatever he wanted to do after high school," said Patricia Manley, who was Howard's counselor.

Howard once single-handedly scored 49 points in a basketball game.

Joetta Mial, his former principal, said a letter that Howard sent home from Iraq was read recently at his church.

"It was about a friend of his that was just killed and he wrote, 'Say a prayer for his parents,'" said Mial. "But that letter brings out that he wasn't someone out there for himself."

Howard is survived by his sons, Dominic, 10, and Christian, 6.

Army Spc. Walter B. Howard II

Sgt. Howard

Walter B. Howard II's father served in both the Navy and Army, so it made sense his son would follow in his bootsteps.

"He loved his country and believed in what he was doing Ñ defending our country," said his mother, Carolyn Howard. "No mother wants their son to go to war, but I respected what he was doing."

Howard, 35, of Rochester, Mich., died Feb. 2 of injuries sustained by a roadside explosive in Ashraf. He was assigned to Fort Carson.

He worked as a newspaper carrier in junior high and at a Farmer Jack grocery store in high school. In the Navy, he was a gunner's mate, serving on the USS Coral Sea, part of a long line of military men, including his father, Walter B. Howard.

He attended Macomb County Community College after leaving the Navy, taking classes in computers and was a class shy of graduating. He returned to civilian life and became an automotive designer in suburban Detroit, contracting his services out to the Big Three automakers.

He also is survived by his wife, Jamie, and daughter, Katherine, 1.

"He loved his daughter and used to rock her to sleep every night before bed," said Carolyn Howard.

Army Sgt. Rickey Jones

In Iraq, Rickey Jones worried about the kids.

"He sent me pictures of the chocolate he was giving the Iraq kids," said his mother, Tenia Rogers. "Earlier he said, 'Mom, I grew up in a good place and I just want those kids to grow up in a good place too.' I don't think he 100 percent agreed with why they were there. But he told me he would do what he had to do."

Jones, 21, of Kokomo, Ind., was killed Feb. 22 by a roadside bomb in Hawijah. He graduated high school in 2002 and was assigned to Fort Campbell.

"He was just one hell of a good soldier," said Ronnie Jones, his grandfather.

Tracey Sturgell, a neighbor and friend, said that after Jones' first tour in Iraq, he came home changed. "He was a man, you know, and looked at things a whole lot different in the world," she said.

His mother said the change was unmistakable. "It was who he became, this soldier, this man" Ñ a man who volunteered for a second Iraq tour, a respected team leader and warrior with a soft heart, she said.

His brother, Michael Jones, said there is no doubt about Rickey's patriotism. "He was proud of what he did and proud to serve his country. He died proud."

Army Cpl. Andrew J. Kemple

Cpl. Kemple

Andrew J. Kemple made some bad choices when he was a teenager, but he matured into a respectable adult who always looked out for the underdog.

"He was moved by human suffering and had a motivation to help other people," said his mother, Deirdre Ostlund.

Kemple, 23, of Cambridge, Minn., died Feb. 12 in Tikrit when his vehicle came under small-arms fire. He was a 2001 high school graduate and was assigned to Fort Campbell.

After Sept. 11, 2001, Kemple gained a new perspective on life, which eventually led him to enlist in 2003. "He was so touched by all that suffering. Despite his troubles, he always had a heart of gold," said Ostlund.

Whenever Kemple and his mom would talk about the war, he'd reassure her that whatever happened "was a soldier's job, Ma," Ostlund said.

About a year ago, Ostlund moved to Brazil with Kemple's stepfather, Richard Ostlund. She sent her son Brazilian chocolate, his favorite, and checked on him through e-mail and video messages via webcam.

"It was nice to see him smile and laugh," Ostlund said.

He also is survived by his father, John Kemple, of Motley, Minn.