California’s War Dead
Military deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan, 2001-Present
I was at a friend's house. My husband called and said, 'Come home. Just come home.' When he opened the door he was crying and I saw the chaplain and the other officers, and of course I knew it was Danny.
—Lynda Unger, mother
Mom, you know how things are here and even though nothing is easy, I keep fighting and I am doing everything possible to return home.
—Carlos Arellano, in a letter to his mother
He'll always be a hero. That's something nobody can take away from him.
—Crystal Blasjo, wife, to WRAL in Raleigh, N.C.
I won't be in the States until December at the soonest. Just chillax folks, I will be home when I am home, so no worries.... Everything is good, I have all of my fingers and toes, and I am in fairly good health, lol. I gotta go, but I love you all.
—Michael "Paul" Bridges, final message on his MySpace page
He was ready to come home. He was ready to move forward with his life. But he understood he had to be there.
—Judi Arel, fiancee
He was self-made. He never asked for anything, and he gave everything. At 21 years of age, Kirk Bosselmann impacted the lives of everyone he touched.
—James Cappuccilli, high school guidance counselor
Josh was happy. He was outgoing, always had a big smile. Everything was fun...Even cleaning the house was fun. It was like a game.
—Sara Mattero, mother
He had a strong patriotism. He took the military spirit to heart. He tried to be a man of honor and liberty and honesty.
—Angela Ashlock, wife
That was the only time I've cried in this country. I've seen a lot of stuff over here, a lot of good things and a lot of bad things. But I'll never forget how it felt knowing that Santos wasn't gonna be coming back to the States when we redeployed, and we weren't gonna be able to do all the things that we had planned to do together -- barbecues, drinking a beer or two. Just everything.
—Andrew Townsend, fellow soldier and friend
We'd been waiting to go to California our whole lives. Our only way out was to join the Marines.
—Christopher Dix, brother
Total killed as of February 13, 2012:
686