Army Spc. Jaime Moreno

Died October 13, 2004 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

---

28, of Round Lake Beach, Ill.; assigned to the 20th Engineer Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died Oct. 13 of injuries sustained Oct. 12 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his patrol vehicle in Baghdad. Also killed were Capt. Dennis L. Pintor and Spc. Michael S. Weger.

---

Northern Illinois native dies in Iraq

Associated Press

ROUND LAKE BEACH, Ill. — Jaime Moreno had dreamed about becoming a soldier ever since he was 5 years old.

The 28-year-old northern Illinois native died in Iraq Wednesday pursuing that dream when the patrol vehicle he was traveling in hit a roadside bomb in eastern Baghdad, his family said.

“His dreams came true,” Moreno’s sister Maricela Repizo said. “That was his dream, to be a soldier.”

Also killed in the incident were Capt. Dennis L. Pintor and Spc. Michael S. Weger.

Capt. David C. Woodruff Jr., Moreno and Weger’s former commanding officer, described both men as “true heroes and warriors.”

They were on a combat mission to find terrorists and search for IEDs, Woodruff said. “That was their mission, and Bravo Company is the best at it,” he said. “They are the hardest working soldiers in their Area of Operations and they never stop.”

Moreno, a native of Round Lake Beach, had been with the Army in Iraq since March, and his death dealt a blow to his close-knit family, many of whom said they do not agree with the war.

“He died for this country, for a war that shouldn’t be going on in the first place,” Moreno’s brother, Jorge, said. “We support the troops but not the war.”

Family members said Moreno had been home for two weeks in August and called home as often as possible to speak with his mother and his wife.

“Everything about him was special. That’s just the way he was,” said his other sister, Patricia Moreno-Sanchez. “He was a lovely son, a lovely brother, a lovely husband and a lovely father.”

Moreno-Sanchez said her brother was generous and would always help people in need.

“He used to help people so much,” she said. “He helped people who didn’t speak English, people who needed a ride to the Mexican consulate at three or four in the morning. He never said no to anyone.”

Jaime Moreno is survived by his wife, an 8-year-old daughter, his parents, his brother and two sisters.