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Local soldier dies of attack wounds
| Friday, Mar 16 2007 11:25 PM
Last Updated: Friday, Mar 16 2007 11:29 PM
Army Pfc. Alberto Garcia Jr., 23, of Bakersfield, died Tuesday in Baghdad of wounds suffered from small-arms fire and an explosive, the Department of Defense confirmed Friday.
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He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, out of Schweinfurt, Germany.
Garcia was a member of Valley Bible Fellowship, said pastor Tom Touchstone. He said Garcia's mother had asked church officials not to release any information, but that the pastoral staff would be meeting with her Sunday to discuss services.
"We were caught off guard," Touchstone said about the death.
Contacted at their home Friday night, the family declined to comment.
Hillcrest Memorial Park & Mortuary will be also handling funeral arrangements, said Barbara Tarpley, a funeral director.
In Iraq since August, the 26th infantry is part of the 2nd "Dagger" Brigade, 1st Infantry Division and is more commonly known as the Blue Spaders.
The unit is in several locations throughout Iraq, but is primarily stationed in and around Baghdad and Ramadi, two of the most violent areas in the country, according to the regiment's Web site.
A photo published in a September edition of the Web publication "Defend America" showed a picture of Garcia during a patrol in the Adhamiya neighborhood, a dangerous suburb of Baghdad.
As of Feb. 27, 14 soldiers of the infantry regiment had died since the unit deployed in August, according to the regiment's Web site.
According to its Web site, the U.S. Army's 1st Infantry Division of the is nicknamed "The Big Red One" after its shoulder patch. It is the oldest division in the Army, and has seen continuous service since 1917.
The division's motto is "No Mission Too Difficult, No Sacrifice Too Great -- Duty First."