Spec. Bobby J. Pagan

Spec. Bobby J. Pagan
Hometown:Austin, Texas, U.S.

Age:23 years old

Died:February 13, 2010 in Operation Enduring Freedom.

Unit:Army, 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.

Incident: Died of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked their unit with a makeshift bomb Feb. 13 in Zhari province, Afghanistan.



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Austin soldier's funeral draws large crowd
Bobby Pagan's casket bore the logos of UT and the U.S. Army.

By Jeremy Schwartz AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Updated: 12:00 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010

Published: 8:43 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26, 2010

Spc. Bobby Pagan, 23, was supposed to be home on leave in a few days, introducing his large family to his fiancée and sharing war stories of his first tour in Afghanistan. Instead, friends and family attended Pagan's funeral Friday and said his East Austin neighborhood will never be the same without the jokester whose infectious smile put everyone around him at ease.

Large crowds filled Santa Julia Catholic Church and Assumption Cemetery to say goodbye to the lifelong East Austinite who attended Oak Springs Elementary School , Lamar Middle School and Anderson High School.

"He had a big heart, a very big heart," said Jaime Anzures, a classmate at Anderson High who called Pagan her best friend. "He put everyone else before him. The only way I'm getting through it is knowing that he helped me get through a lot. No one can replace Bobby. He's been a man since he was 13."

Pagan, who joined the Army in 2008, was killed Feb. 13 with two fellow soldiers by a suicide bomber on a motorbike in Kandahar province.

Lalo Trevino met Pagan when the two worked at an Austin Lexus dealership before Pagan entered the Army.

"He was always joking around, always playing around, making people smile," said Trevino, who served two tours in Iraq with the U.S. Army. "He asked me a lot about what it was like over there. ... He was very, very excited about joining the Army. He said he wanted to be just like his brother."

Pagan was 12 when his older brother Robert left home and entered the military. His mother has said that soon after, Pagan took his brother's place, ensuring his siblings got to school and working at Highland Mall selling smoothies.

Pastor Christopher Ferrer of Santa Julia Church said Pagan touched many lives.

During Pagan's funeral Mass, Ferrer led more than 100 mourners in a standing ovation.

"Today we have in front of us a brave soldier," Ferrer said. "Bobby, we admire your courage and we admire your self-sacrifice."

Later at Assumption Cemetery, Pagan's military burial drew a number of childhood and high school friends, several of whom wore T-shirts with a photo of Pagan. One wore a sweatshirt airbrushed with a picture of Pagan sporting his trademark grin.

Pagan's custom coffin lid was adorned with two of his loves. Painted burnt orange, it featured the logo of his beloved University of Texas Longhorns and an emblem of the U.S. Army.

jschwartz@statesman.com; 912-2942

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For a complete listing of all soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, please visit this link: The Washington Post