Fallen Heroes of Operation Iraqi Freedom

"lauro this is mom just had to share i will be a grandmother jo anna will have her baby june 28 2010 married christoper gomez and praise god we moved to san antonio tx able to be closer to church and kids closer to there jobs .we miss you .they are opening the lauro g de leon center in floresville tx june 5 2010.thank you jesus .love mom and family."
graciela lopez of san antonio tx bexar

"omg its been 6 years, i cant help but to think of u every day!! i know its extreamly sad that your not here to see another generation grow up, but it is good to know ur with jesus now! :) ur missed lauro!!!!!! so so so so much i love you!! and i know ill see you when its my time!! muah your cousin victoria santana!! :)"
victoria of natalia/tx

"Mrs. Lopez, my thoughts and prayers are still with you and your family.

Chief"
CW3(Retired) Harlan A. Bizzell of Severn, MD

"Always in our thoughts and prayers! My son, Sgt. Anthony Redford, served with Lauro in Iraq."
Lois Redford of Spring, TX

"To my son lauro we miss you and love you .have lots of fun love mom."
gracie lopez of san antonio ,texas

"”Honor and Remember” - “Project Compassion” We love our Soldiers! We love our country and we cannot express enough love and compassion to the families of our fallen heroes. War does not discriminate – It breaks our hearts to see the faces of the fallen. We want to give this gift to you. We are a 501c3 nonprofit organization! Over 1,750 portraits have been completed and shipped to the parents and or spouse - at no cost as this is a gift from one American to another!
Contact us directly at Projectcompassion@manti.com or go to www.heropaintings.com . If you have already had a portrait completed, we pray that you are enjoying the portrait and God Bless You.
Sincerely and Respectfully,
Kenna"
Project Compassion - Kenna of Manti, Utah USA

"Deleon, I still got pics of us in Basic and still remember the last words you spoke to me. Telling me how much of an idiot I was for not going reserve. I think about you often since u left. U were my battle and best friend going into the Army and will always be even after death. I praise your courage and hope your family is doing ok. I know I promised to go see you and meet your mom in Floresville and give her those crazy pics of us and I still plan to. Much Love"
Sgt. Azure, Justin M (retired) of Rolette, ND

"Dear lauro i miss you a hole lot i wish you were still in my life and i miss you picking me up and throughing me in the air but even though your not here with me your still a great part of my life to my favorite cousin who i miss a hole lot of lauro deleon!"
victoria santana of natalia,tx

"To my son lauro we miss you,praise god for giving me not just a son but a friend and a solder that love jesus and his family .ruben is doing great and joanna is a big blessing three great gifts from jesus to me.love mom"
Grace G. Lopez of san antonio,tx bexar

"We love and miss you alot. Can't beleive it's been 4 years."
your big sister of floresville

"To the Family, For four years I have worn a KIA bracelet with Lauro s name on it. For four years I have relived that night in my sleep. I was on patrol that night. Following his convoy in the gates when his convoy was attacked. I have never really told anyone this story. I am sorry, until today i have never seen his face and its very hard.
Ijust wanna say to his family and friends I am sorry for your loss and I will alaways honor Lauro DeLeon Jr. Every morning i place on his bracelet and I tell him thanks and i am sorry"
Tim cplaisted@metrocast.net of Rochester,NH USA

"It's hard to believe that it's been four years since DeLeon's death. My son, Anthony Redford, served in Iraq with him in the 644th TC Unit. We continue to remember DeLeon for his service to our country, and we will always keep him and his family in our prayers. God bless you!"
Lois Redford of Spring, TX

"Lauro, I love you and I miss you. I feel so honored and blessed to have had you as a cousin but more like a brother. We grew up together and I remember all of the times I took care of you and have such wonderful memories that no one can ever take away. Like when you were only 5 yrs old and would wear a mohawk and how you would sing "Because I gotta have hair, I gotta have hair" You were so funny. I will never forget my last conversation with you. You came home for 2 weeks to visit and surprised the entire family. Two weeks was no where near enough time to spend with us all so we had to share you with your friends too. But I remember the morning you left back to Iraq and I didn't get to see you but I remember I called you right before you got on the plane just to tell you that I loved you. I'm so glad that I did because that was the last time I'd ever be able to talk to you. I can't wait to see you one day and I know you are with grandma so you are very lucky. I love you and thank you for serving our country and for being such a wonderful cousin. Miss ya. -- Pita"
Lupe of San Antonio, Texas

"August 2, 2008
To the family of Spc. Lauro G. DeLeon, Jr.:
Lauro gave the ultimate sacrifice and will be held in the hearts of Americans forever. I cannot and will not let our fallen heroes be forgotten. My deepest sympathy to you. "Some gave all."
Peggy Childers
"Don't Let The Memory Of Them Drift Away"
www.IraqWarHeroes.org"
Peggy Childers of Carson City, NV

"I deeply miss you and love u lauro.
you were and still are to me a great friend. i will always remember going to ur house and making pancakes for breakfast and u telling ur parents to stay in their room! i will also remember everyday i picked u up for school and our breakfast stops at P&T, and all of our conversations on the phone and on the internet when u were sent away.
i miss u so much and i think about u everyday, and sometimes i cry when it hurts to know ur gone.
I love u Lauro....

brandi529412@aol.com"
Brandi Rios Cruz of Floresville/San Antonio

"i MiSS YOU!! WISH YOU WERE HERE FOR MY QUiNCE BUT i GUESS THiNGS HAPPEN FOR A REASON....WE LOVE YOU AND MiSS YOU!"
of GRAND PRAIRIE, TX

"HI MIJO,GUESS WHO IS HAVING A BABY YOUR SISTER CARRIE IS DUE IN JANUARY. WE HOPE IT IS BORN AROUND YOUR BIRTHDAY WOULDNT THAT BE NICE

LOVE GRANDMA DL."
AURORA of SAN ANTONIO ,TEXAS U.S.A.

"SPC Deleon, i hadn't had the pleasure of ever meeting you, but when my unit got back home, the 217th TC and later on in the year we had our welcome home ceremony, We meet this woman. Mrs. Deleon, i know i had heard the last name and the only person that i know with that same last name was the Soldier from the picture in the drill hall that i always used to read. We had just found out that one of the guys that was suppose to deploy with us was left behind and pick up with the 644th TC out of Beaumont, Tx. That was my original unit before. I meet Mrs. Deleon and not knowing her son, but i gave her my condolenses. Back in the unit we had new soldiers. Soldiers that had been in the deployment with SPC Deleon, and the one i had the interest of talking too was his former roommate. The one that spent most of the time with him and knew him first hand. That soldiers is SGT Petri, Nathaniel. It always brigns tears to my eyes when he talks about him, cause i knew he was one of us. I now leave this message here and say that, i wish i could have meet SPC Deleon, my husband says his was a great person and a amazing friend. To the family of SPC deleon, i thank him for serving our country, I'm out here for the second time with most of the guys that knew you and it really touches my heart to know how they remember you and how highly they talk about you. I know we will see you one day, rest in peace and we will keep trucking for you and our Fallen Heroes."
SGT Petri-Ayala, Angeliz of San Antonio, TX

"Lauro it was great having you as a roomate. i miss all the times we hung out and just had fun talking about our lives back at home and I will always have you in my thoughts and you will never be forgotten. I will always visit you when i get a chance. i know that you are in a better place now with the lord. I will see you again my friend. 217th TC and 644th TC have you in there thoughts always."
SGT. Nathaniel Lee Petri of San Antonio, TX USA

"To the family of Spc Lauro G Deleon, Jr, I bought two hero bracelets...one for me & one for my 14 year old son. He is the one that told me of these bracelets...that you can buy them and what they were. I did and your son's name is on the one that I wear. Then we moved a few times after I got the bracelets. They were packed away for a few months. When I got to where I'm living now, I pulled the bracelets out and set them up in the living room as memorials. Yesterday my son wanted to wear them again. I was curious about the names. Who were these two people that my son & I wear their names around our wrist? What were they like? How did they die? So I emailed the site where I got the bracelets at and they sent me here. I'm glad that I found out about Lauro and the kind of person he was, and about his family. I don't know what to say accept that I appreciate greatly the sacrifice he made for me and my family and our country. I'm proud to be wearing his name on my wrist. :) God bless you and your family."
Renate N. Pope of Clinton, NC, USA

"Spc DeLeon, I thank you for your selfless service to your country. I wish I could have done more for you. And although I never knew you, I think of you often and pray for you and those you left behind."
Doc Rogers of Manchester, New Hampshire

"I'm just another American who happened to stuble across the story of this brave man. I never had the privilage to meet this hero, but as an American I would like to thank Lauro G. DeLeon, Jr. for his impressive service, that he seemed to handle with a smile. What an amazing man. Thank you sir.

May God keep you"
Maximilian E. Alva of Houston, TX/USA

"In your honor and with gratitude to you, Lauro Garcia DeLeon Jr., I’ve planted a daffodil in your name, as have others across the United States as part of Project LIVE ON, a not-for-profit program founded to memorialize each U. S. military who has died in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Thousands of beautiful daffodils will come up each Spring, and, like your Spirit, will LIVE ON...and ON. Blessings to you, the family, as you grieve, and heal. For details, contact projectliveon@aol.com. Jan. 23, 2006."
Gretchen Forbes of the northcentral mountains of Pennsylvania

"I have planted a daffodil for you Lauro, along with 49 more bulbs to represent other soldiers who have been killed in Iraq. Your flower will be seen every year and your sacrifice remembered. Projectliveon@aol.com"
Ruth Anderson of Mountain View , California

"hi im your cousin we miss you and i love you and so does everybody else"
cousin nick of hawaii

"I have your picture in my room theres not a day that goes by where i dont think about you, i remember all the good times we had and times where we would hang out and download music...ill meet up with you again"
sgt. joseph wells of corpus christi, tx

"Lauro we miss you.......I dont have very much memories of us together but i do remember how you always just had a smile on your face, you always knew how to light up a room with your smile. Im ashamed because i didnt get to spend as much time around you as I should have. And im sorry, but now im paying the consequences. But you will be happy to know that I am trying to get my life straight with god, slowly but I am. I want to be up there wit you and grandma. I love you and I miss you. God Bless you!!! Thanks for everything"
COUSIN KRISTAL NICOLE SANCHEZ GARCIA of San Antonio Tx

"Lauro we miss you.......I dont have very much memories of us together but i do remember how you always just had a smile on your face, you always knew how to light up a room with your smile. Im ashamed because i didnt get to spend as much time around you as I should have. And im sorry, but now im paying the consequences. But you will be happy to know that I am trying to get my life straight with god, slowly but I am. I want to be up there wit you and grandma. I love you and I miss you. God Bless you!!! Thanks for everything"
Cousin Kristal Nicole Sanchez Garcia of San Antonio Tx

"I went Basic and AIT with Spc Deleon. And amazingly we meet in Quwait and again in Iraq. He was with the 644th TC and I was with a different unit. But we still see each other somethimes. So I have seen all his millitary carier from the start to the end. What an amazing soldier he was. He was the best marksman from the whole compay in basic traing. He was choosen as a squad lider in AIT. So he was one talented and motivated soldier I know. So smart, so kind, It's infact something i can't explain in words.
I rely miss him. rest in peace brother!"
SGT AGA JOTE of New Carrollton, MD

"i served with lauro in the 644th he was my friend and i miss him alot and think about him everyday i wake up.Grace you are the word to the letter GRACE i will never forget the first time i talked to you and you prayed for me thank you and god bless love ya"
spc paul gautreaux of beaumont texas

"thank you for your prayer's and keep praying for our soldier's to get back home save and for them after they get home its been a hard year for them.SPC Lauro G De leon's mom"
grace lopez of floresville tx

"I went through basic training at Fort Sill with Lauro in the summer of 2003. He was my guidon bearer when I was platoon guide. He had the highest qualification score on the M-16 in our entire battery - 39 out of 40 targets. He was a good soldier. He was funny and had such a good attitude, just a great guy to be around to help forget where you were and how much you missed home. He was one of the few teenagers in the platoon that acted like he was in his mid-20s. He came to me a few times for relationship advice, and this one time I told him he should send his girlfriend flowers from one of those 1-800 places. I was kind of joking when I suggested it, but he did it and supposedly it worked. That's the kind of guy he was. He was in basic, a place where you look forward to the daily mailcall to bring good news from home and put a smile on your face, and he's focusing his energy on making a loved one on the outside smile. I missed Lauro before I learned of his passing. To anyone who knew Lauro, know that I am incredibly proud to have gone through training with him, and to have called him a friend, if only for a 9-week span of our lives."
SPC Joe Copalman of Arizona Army National Guard

"i am one of Lauros step cousin i really miss him and i really wish that he was still alive"
of Floresville Tx

"To Grace Lopez, mother of Spc. DeLeon
Grace I met you briefly at the church in San Antonio, as I represented my son, Sgt. Brad Nix, during the service. You had such a calmness, peace and serenity about you, I had to take a look at my own heart. I was a Christian, but did not possess quite the faith and assurance that you had. Because of your testimony, I have a closer walk with God today. I was not a "Churchey Mom" as you were, but I am becoming a better representative of Christ. I want people to be able to see Christ in me, as I saw Him in you that day. My prayers are continually with you and your family, and our troops..."
Crystal Nix of Singer, La.

"Lauro thank you for serving your country it means alot to us You were a good cousin to me and we miss you that is from all of your family that you have"
of Floresville Tx

"Lauro thank you for serving your country it means alot to us You were a good cousin to me and we miss you"
George Malacara of Floresville Tx

"Lauro thank you for risking your life for our freedom. Thank you for the memories you brought. You were a great friend. God Bless you and God Bless your family."
Love Adam Villarreal and friends of Floresville, Texas

"we thank you for your prayer's, lauro was a good son and brother and a good soldier.we miss you son, but i know that nothing will ever hurt you and that you are safe now with jesus. praise god"
Grace Lopez (mom) of Floresville Tx

"Specialist DeLeon, goodbye soldier and thank you. You are my hero."
Bill of Houston, Texas

"To the family of Lauro,
Our sincerest condolences for your loss. Our family has also suffered the loss of a precious life in this battle for freedom. Army Spc. Daniel A. Desens, Jr. KIA 6/24/04. Lauro is a great American hero and will always be remembered for his bravery and sacrifice he gave to our country. May God bless you during this difficult time."
Vic and Tammy McClain--azquail@att.net of Tucson, AZ

"To the family and friends of Lauro, He is a true hero and will never be forgotten. Our family shares in your sorrow, we lost my brother SPC Shawn Davies on July 8 2004. May God be with you at this time and until you meet with Lauro again."
Toni Peters of Concord OH

"To Lauro's Family:
There are no words to express the sorrow we feel for your loss. May God bless you and help you through this time."
Dan and Meg Manninen of San Antonio, Texas

"Lauro was a loving son, grandson, brother, nephew and cousin. Though his live was ended we rejoice in knowing that our American Soldier is now living in the Kingdom of God. As a little boy we knew he was destined to be a soldier, playing in his camouflage outfits, helmet and BB gun with Grandpa De Leon in the back yard. Lauro joined the Army as a way to pay for college, as many of our young soldiers do. But little did he know that it was in God’s plan all along for him to be a soldier, in life and in death. Now he is our Soldier of God. Just like those others who gave the ultimate sacrifice for the country, Lauro is a Hero.

We love you Lauro and will greatly miss you mijo. I will always remember all the silly things you did, but most of all I will miss your smile and big ears. I am so proud to have you as my nephew. I was blessed to have known the fine young man that you grew in to. 20 years may seem to short, but I would have rather known you 20 years than to have never known you at all. I will do my best to help keep your memory alive and hope that one day my children will be half the person that you are. I know that you are looking down on us and smiling. We will miss you so much, but one day we will all be together a one big family again. The DeLeon and Garcia family came together because of you and will stay together because of you. I Love You So Much and Pray that you will with God’s help mend my aching heart. Loving you always, Tia Margie"
Margie DeLeon Bell of SAN ANTONIO, TX/USA

"Thank you brave soldier for sacrificing your today for my children's safer tomorrow. You have our utmost respect and gratitude. May God provide your family with comfort in their time of sorrow. May you forever rest in Heavenly peace. Neither you nor your sacrifice will be forgotten."
a grateful family in Phoenix, AZ

"To Lauro' Family and Friends:

On behalf of the Blanco-Caldas family, we send our sincerest condolences. We share the same loss ... the same pain. Our prayers are with you in this most difficult time and we thank you for your soldier's bravery and sacrifice.

Sincerely,

The Family of Capt. Ernesto M. Blanco-Caldas, 82nd Airborne
KIA Iraq 12/28/2003.
Gloria Caldas (The Big Ern's Mom) of San Antonio, TX
gloria.caldas@banksterling.com"

"Thank you Lauro DeLeon, Jr., you will not be forgotten. Your bravery goes beyond words. I want to express my deepest gratitude for your sacrifice. To the family and friends, my prayers and deep condolences in your loss. May God strengthen you from knowing that fellow Americans and people around the world care about you and grieve with you in your loss. God bless you all. A very appreciative fellow American,"
Leo Titus of Grayslake, Illinios

"To the family and friends of Spc. Lauro DeLeon, Jr.:
May God's grace be with you during your time of grief. Please know that our thoughts and prayers are with you and we feel your loss and share in your sorrow. Bless Lauro for the sacrifice he has made to make a better life for the rest of us."
The Ford Family of Wells, Nevada

"To the family and friends of Spc. Lauro DeLeon, Jr.:
I am saddened by the loss of your loved one. He will always be remembered as a hero for fighting for freedom. I hope that this website will be a source of comfort and encouragement for you during this difficult time, and in the future as you recall the memories of Lauro, who continues to live on in your heart."
Tim Rivera of Powder Springs, Georgia