Army Spc. Arturo Huerta-Cruz

Died April 14, 2008 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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23, of Clearwater, Fla.; assigned to the 10th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Drum, N.Y.; died April 14 in Tuz, Iraq, of wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device.

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Army Spc. Arturo Huerta-Cruz remembered

The Associated Press

Arturo Huerta-Cruz joined the Army because he wanted new experiences, his family said. He thought it would help him with his education.

“We feel proud of the decision he took,” said his father, Pascual Huerta. “The only option we had was to pray for him.”

Huerta-Cruz, 23, of Clearwater, Fla., was killed April 14 in Tuz from wounds sustained from an explosion. He was assigned to Fort Drum.

He loved soccer. A 1996 picture from the Dunedin Winter League shows him in the front row, the only Hispanic kid on the team.

After graduating high school in 2003, Huerta-Cruz enrolled at St. Petersburg College. He received an associate’s degree in architectural design and construction technology in 2006 from St. Petersburg College.

He also is survived by his mother, Maria Cruz.

“The memory of my son is that he was always a good student, a good son, very respectful,” said Maria Cruz. “He always had a lot of desire to come out ahead, improve himself.”

Huerta-Cruz was working on attaining citizenship this year. Army officials told the family they would try to get the soldier granted citizenship posthumously.