Army Spc. Mike T. Sonoda Jr.

Died September 22, 2005 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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34, of Fallbrook, Calif.; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry Regiment, California Army National Guard, Fullerton, Calif.; died Sept. 22 of injuries sustained Sept. 21 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his M113 Armored Personnel Carrier in Baghdad.

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Solider remembered as ‘spirit of the platoon’

Associated Press

LOS ANGELES — Mike Sonoda Jr., a specialist with the California Army National Guard, was killed in Iraq last month when a homemade bomb blew up near his armored personnel carrier.

Sonoda, 34, died Sept. 22 of injuries suffered a day earlier in the Baghdad explosion. He was the only soldier killed.

Sonoda had been living in Fallbrook in San Diego County before he was deployed to Iraq in January with the guard’s 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry Regiment.

Sonoda often was the first to volunteer for patrols, said Maj. Daniel Markert, one of his commanders.

“He was the kind of guy the younger soldiers would look up to and the older sergeants could rely on,” Markert said. “He was a real spirit of the platoon.”

He relaxed by reading science fiction and history.

“He could read a 300-page book in a day, and he would always come back for more,” Markert said.

Sonoda was “very caring and generous, inquisitive and dedicated,” said his sister, Irene.

“He was my big brother and my hero. Our entire family is so proud of his service,” she said in a statement.

Sonoda joined the Army in 1995 and served about two years as a parachute rigger with the 325th Airborne in Italy.

He joined the National Guard two days before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and served in Kuwait until March 2002.

He was due to return to the United States early next year.

In addition to his sister, Sonoda is survived by his parents, Mike Sr. and Emiko.