101st Airborne soldier from Antioch killed in Iraq
By Simon Read
East County Times Article Launched: 06/13/2008 04:38:11 PM PDT
A 22-year-old soldier from Antioch was killed in Iraq on Thursday after a roadside bombing, the Department of Defense announced.
Sgt. John D. Aragon of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) died in Kadamiyah, northwest of Baghdad, from wounds suffered when his Humvee struck an improvised explosive device, military officials said in a news release.
A 2004 Antioch High School graduate, Aragon entered the U.S. Army in March 2006, his family said.
"He just always wanted to be in the Army," said his mother, Denise, a pair of her son's dogtags hanging around her neck. "He went to the recruitment office when he was still a senior in high school without telling me. I found out and made him go to (Los Medanos) College for a year and then make a decision.
"I told him maybe you'll meet the girl you're going to marry. You don't know what will happen."
The extra year did nothing to diminish Aragon's passion for the military. After arriving at Fort Campbell, Ky., he called his parents.
"He said, 'I love the Army and the Army loves me,'" Denise Aragon said. "The two just clicked."
An American flag hangs outside the Aragon family home on Gentrytown Drive. A black flag with a white eagle's head, the emblem of the 101st Airborne, hangs by the front door. Aragon shipped out to Iraq on Oct. 16, 2007.
Denise Aragon said she naturally feared for her son but kept her apprehension to herself.
"If he knew I was scared, then he would have worried," she said. Aragon's father, John, said his son wanted to be near the action. "He would say, 'A true soldier is a fighting foot soldier.' We wouldn't watch the news; we'd never turn on CNN. It was always this many soldiers were killed today, or that many killed."
Aragon, a diehard Oakland Raiders fan with the team name tattooed above his heart, purchased an Iraqi cell phone and a long-distance calling card and phoned home once a week. Although proud to serve in the military, he did not harbor any romantic notions of war.
"He'd tell us it was pure hell," John Aragon Sr. said. "Those were his words: 'pure hell.'"
His family did what they could to provide him the comforts of home, sending care packages with brown sugar Poptarts (one of his favorites), granola bars and canned oysters. During his last conversation with his mother on June 4, he said he'd be home next month for 18 days and asked for a packet of Flaming Hot Cheetos. "We never got to send them," Denise Aragon said.
Rendered "numb" by the loss of their only son, both parents said they are proud of what he accomplished, including the rank of sergeant in two years. "It just made me beam," said Aragon's father. "I went and told all of my friends. I was extremely proud."
Mayor Donald Freitas said the thoughts and prayers of the city are with Aragon's family.
"His death brings the war closer to home," Freitas said. "It makes it more realistic. This is not an esoteric subject - it's more real."
Councilman Arne Simonsen, a 24-year Naval veteran whose son served in the first Gulf War, said such tragic news is always hard to bear. "As a veteran, it's something that's always on your mind," he said. "It's something none of us ever want to deal with."
Said Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in a written statement: "Sgt. John Aragon served with bravery and loyalty to his country and fellow soldiers. His devotion to service is an inspiration for all Americans, and his sacrifice will not be forgotten."
Aragon is the second serviceman from Antioch to die in Iraq. On Sept. 24, 2005, Sgt. Daniel Scheile, 37, died from injuries he received while patrolling in southeastern Baghdad when a roadside bomb exploded near his armored vehicle. Scheile was with the Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry.
Aragon is the 12th serviceman from Contra Costa County killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.
