The San Antonio Express-News publishes a tribute each year to the military men and women from South Texas who died while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In 2011, 10 died in Afghanistan and three died in Iraq.
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Jeff Ausborn
Air Force Maj. Jeff Ausborn's interests were his wife and five children, flying, and Alabama football.
Ausborn, a T-1 Jayhawk instructor pilot at Randolph AFB, called home every day while he was in Afghanistan to talk to his wife, Suzanna, a retired Air Force captain.
Ausborn, 41, was among nine Americans killed in Kabul on March 27, when an Afghan pilot opened fire on them during a meeting.
He was born and raised in Gadsden, Ala., where he first dreamed of becoming a fighter pilot. He was a computer science major at the University of Alabama, where he received a full scholarship.
Thomas Andrew Bohall??
Army Sgt. Thomas Andrew Bohall was known to friends on the Reagan High School soccer team as ?The Rev? and ?Coach Bohall? because of the spirited exhortations he'd yell from the sidelines.
In 2005, after finishing first in his division in a marathon run in Kansas, Bohall was approached by a recruiter in Army special operations. He served twice in Iraq and was on his second tour of Afghanistan when he was killed May 26 by an explosive in Kandahar province.
Army officials said Bohall, 25, a member of the 101st Airborne Division, was in exceptional shape.
His survivors include his wife Jessica and young daughter.
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John Felix Farias
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Marine Lance Cpl. John Felix Farias used to work as a lifeguard at the Comal River for the city of New Braunfels, guarding tubers during the summer.
Farias, 20, was killed June 28 in Helmand province, Afghanistan, while on combat operations.
Mourners lined the streets as his casket was carried in a motorcade through town. Many attended a memorial service at Canyon High School, where he played defensive end.
More than 1,000 people who attended his funeral heard longtime friend Chris Serna read a ?death letter? Farias had written, urging his parents, older sister and others to be happy and laugh often.
?And I will see all of you at the pearly gates,? the letter said.
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Ira Benjamin Laningham IV
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Army Pfc. Ira Benjamin Laningham IV of Zapata was the first South Texas soldier to die in the war in Afghanistan in 2011.
Laningham, 22, was killed in Logar Province on Jan. 7, when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device and small arms fire.
While attending Zapata High School, he played the trumpet and honored fallen soldiers by performing taps at military funerals.
He told his family he was going to be a lifer and had aspirations to become an Army Ranger.
Laningham married Stephanie Armendariz, also a soldier. He told her if anything happened to him not to cry, because he was doing something he loved.
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Corey Owens
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Relatives said that after Airman 1st Class Corey Owens graduated from the Marine Military Academy in Harlingen in 2003 he moved to San Antonio and fell in love with the city and the people.
Owens, 26, died Feb. 17 at Al Asad Air Base in Iraq of noncombat-related injuries, according to the Department of Defense. He enlisted in the Air Force in 2008 and trained to become an installation patrolman.
His family buried him at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery to be near his two daughters, who live in San Antonio with his ex-wife. He also is survived by his wife, Misty.
He considered his parents heroes.
Rodolfo Rodriguez???
Sgt. Rodolfo Rodriguez Jr. of Pharr was on his first combat tour in Afghanistan, following three in Iraq, when insurgents in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, attacked his unit with a makeshift bomb.
He died of injuries sustained in the attack on Sept. 14, leaving behind a wife, Melissa, and two children. He was 26.
Rodriguez was remembered as a sincere and devoted leader who worked his men hard but wasn't afraid to joke around, carrying the same drive he'd shown as a star basketball player at Weslaco High School into his career in the military.
Benjamin Whetstone Schmid??????t?
Marine Lance Cpl. Benjamin Whetstone Schmidt, a skilled marksman and scout sniper, got a standing ovation when he came home last year and appeared at an Alamo Heights football game.
Schmidt, 24, died on Oct. 6 in Afghanistan. His mother said the Marine Corps determined he was killed by ?friendly fire.?
The Alamo Heights High School graduate, a former defensive back for the Mules, had volunteered to return for a second tour of Afghanistan because he cared about his fellow Marines, friends and relatives said. One quote posted on his Facebook page was, ?Let there be songs to fill the air!?
Glenn Sewell??
Family members remember there was no other job for Sgt. Glenn Sewell of Live Oak than serving his country as a soldier. He ?was guts and glory, he was all about being a soldier,? a cousin said.
Sewell, 23, was killed June 13, when a roadside bomb exploded near his armored vehicle in Wasit province in eastern Iraq.
A 2006 graduate of Judson High School, he played guitar and was known for his sense of humor.
He had served one tour in Afghanistan before he deployed to Iraq. His relatives said he was excited about returning to the war. He told his aunt, Pat Barrett, ?he needed to go back and help his friends.?
Omar Soltero
Gustavo Soltero said his son, Spec. Omar Soltero, always wanted to join the Army and ?fight the bad guys.?
Soltero, 28, died Jan. 31 after he was wounded during a roadside attack by insurgents in Wardak province in central Afghanistan.
He had enlisted about 10 years ago and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team
One of four children, Soltero sometimes talked to his father about the dangers he faced in Afghanistan, but he still wanted to be there. He never forgot his lineage and had a bicultural pride, his family said. But ?he loved his country,? Gustavo Soltero said. ?That's about all there is to say.?
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Benjamin A. Stevenson
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Master Sgt. Benjamin A. Stevenson, a Smithson Valley High School graduate, was on his 10th combat deployment when he died July 21 in Afghanistan after his unit came under attack in Paktika province.
A native of Albany, N.Y., Stevenson, 36, listed Canyon Lake as his home of record. He joined the Army in 1993 and passed his Special Forces qualification in 2000.
He served seven tours of Iraq and was on his third deployment to Afghanistan, assigned to the Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg, N.C.
Stevenson, survived by his wife Heather and two young sons, was buried at Sandhills State Veterans Cemetery in North Carolina.
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Steven Luna Talamantez
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Sgt. Steven Luna Talamantez had helped build the Grand Hyatt downtown before he joined the Army and became an M1 Abrams tank crewman.
Talamantez, 34, was killed by indirect enemy fire in Maysan province on July 10, during his second tour of Iraq. The San Antonio native had a wife, Sandra, and two children.
At his funeral, Talamantez was eulogized as a class comedian among his troops, even though he possessed ?exceptional integrity,? Maj. Gen. David Rubenstein told mourners.
?He was always proud to be a soldier, and proud of his country and what it stands for,? Rubenstein said of Talamantez.
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Charles J. Wren
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Army Spc. Charles J. Wren, remembered as the ?Cheer Man? at Hondo High School, died of wounds suffered in an April 16 attack by insurgents in Nimroz province, Afghanistan.
Wren, 25, was one of three Fort Drum soldiers to die in the attack. He was survived by a wife, Klaryssa, and his two brothers.
Wren's home of record is Beeville, though he was born in Austin and spent most of his life in Hondo.
The ?Cheer Man? nickname came from his persona at pep rallies. But ?Chaz,? as many called him, also was remembered for bravery and strength amid hard knocks that included the loss of both of his parents.
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Andres Zerme?o
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1st Lt. Andres Zerme?o had shown promise as a boy growing up in the Rio Grande Valley. He attended the Science Academy of South Texas in Mercedes, and taught himself how to play the guitar.
After coming to San Antonio and earning a degree in psychology at St. Mary's University, he joined the Army and became known for tackling tough tasks and seeing them through.
On Sept. 25, about a month before his first tour of Afghanistan was to end, Zerme?o, 26, was killed by a rocket-propelled grenade in Wardak province. He was survived by his wife Rachel and two young children.
He was buried at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.
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Staff writers Scott Huddleston, Vincent T. Davis and Lynn Brezosky contributed to this report.
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Source: http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/South-Texas-lost-13-troops-to-war-in-2011-2429927.php
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