Release # 03-004
PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE
82nd AIRBORNE DIVISION
Fort Bragg, NC 28310-5000
Phone (910) 432-0661/0662
Fax (910) 432-5205
March 12, 2008
Release #03-004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
82nd Airborne Division Paratrooper dies in Afghanistan
FORT BRAGG, N.C. — An 82nd Airborne Division
Paratrooper died of wounds sustained when his vehicle patrol hit an
improvised explosive device near Gholam Haydar Kala, Afghanistan,
Saturday.
Sgt. Gabriel Guzman, 25, of Hornbrook, Calif. was
a Forward Observer in the 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry
Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Abn. Div.
Members of C Company remembered SGT Guzman for
being the epitome of selfless service. “On a mission this past year
while conducting a mountain clearance operation, Sergeant Guzman
willingly gave the Platoon RTO his last bit of water knowing that we
still had more than four kilometers to move,” said 1st Sgt. Derek
Gondek, C Company First Sergeant. “That is just the type of man
that he was, his utmost concern was always his Paratroopers.”
Guzman joined the Army in July 2003. He arrived
to the 82nd Abn. Div. in March 2004 after completing Artillery One
Station Unit Training in Fort Sill, Okla. and the Basic Airborne
Course in Fort Benning, Ga. Guzman previously deployed with the 82nd
Abn. Div. in support of Operation Enduring Freedom from February
2007 to March 2008.
“Sergeant Guzman set the standard for
noncommissioned officers with his dedication to duty and he will be
sorely missed by all of us,” said Lt. Col. Timothy McAteer,
commander of 2nd Bn., 508th PIR. “Our deepest sympathies are with
his family as we mourn the loss of a great paratrooper and leader.”
Guzman’s awards and decorations include: the
Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, the Army Commendation Medal
with one oak leaf cluster, the Army Good Conduct Medal with two
loops, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign
Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism
Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the
Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal,
the Combat Action Badge, and the Parachutist’s Badge.
Guzman is survived by his daughter, Angela Haley,
of Bay Point, Calif.; his father, Reynaldo Guzman; his mother,
Shelley Tucker, of Mount Shasta, Calif.; and his sister, Anni
Watson, of Antelope, Calif.