Cory F. Hiltz, 20

Army, Private 1st Class

Based: Ft. Carson, Colo.

2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division

Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom

Died: June 28, 2007

Baghdad (southern part), Iraq

Single

Gender: Male

Hometown: La Verne

High School: LaVerne Lutheran High School (LaVerne)

Burial: Forest Lawn Memorial-Park, Covina Hills

His parents started the Cory Hiltz Smiling Heart Memorial Scholarship which is awarded not on the basis of academic achievement but on the recipient's kindly dealings with others.

Giann C. Joya Mendoza, 06/28/2007

Shane M. Stinson, 06/23/2007

13 memories of Cory F. Hiltz

“

I vividly remember making a left turn off Foothill Blvd. onto Wheeler Ave. in La Verne when a saw PFC's Cory Hiltz's black banner with hundreds of flowers and teddy bears at the foot of the light pole which his banner proudly waved in the early July 2007 air.

Although the war had been in progress for about five years, it truly hit home when I saw Cory's memorial.

I can only imagine the loss your parents, family and friends feel but I know you are still remembered daily as you are honored by hundreds who place flowers and notes at the foot of your banner on Wheeler.

Thank you Cory and your family for your love and dedication to our country. May God grant you eternal rest and may God bless America.

” — Gil Pacheco, May 31, 2010 at 8:33 a.m.

“

I went to school with Cory. We lost touch as young friends often do, but I remember his smile and laughter. He was always such a bright and happy boy. I hadn't spoken to him in years, and I still remember driving by the banner in La Verne that told me of his fate. When I knew Cory he was a good boy, from what I've learned he was a good man. Even though we were no longer in contact I was aware he was overseas and I bawled like a baby when I discovered what happened, right there in the car on the side of the road. I am so glad there is a scholarship fund in his honor.

I will always remember the boy who ate salads with me at lunch, joked with me between classes, and was a true friend who never asked anything in return.

Blessings to his family and friends.

” — S, January 21, 2012 at 1:35 a.m.

“

Cory and I got to our unit at the same time. We were room mates and good friends. We spent our free time ordering more Chinese than we could handle and playing video games. Corey was one of the most honest, down to earth men I have ever met. We trained together all over the mountains of Colorado where I am from and I met his family at their house in California before deployment. His family welcomed me in and I felt like a member of the family. It wasn't hard to see where his personality came from. Hiltz never gave up. Ten mile runs, 20 mile road marches, standing in morning formation wearing shorts in a blizzard. He never gave up. He had a mentality of duty, honor and selfless service which infected those who came into contact with him. His memory remains in my heart.
There isn't a word yet invented that can articulate how eternally grateful I am for your sacrifice. I am humbled to have walked this earth with such a man. A brother, a son, a hero among warriors.
Til we form again.

” — Christopher DeVinny, May 27, 2013 at 6:51 a.m.

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Sources: Times research, Defense Department, iCasualties.org

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Cory F. Hiltz, 20

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13 memories of Cory F. Hiltz