Army Spc. Rel A. Ravago IV

Died November 23, 2003 serving during Operation Iraqi Freedom

21, of Glendale, Calif.; assigned to 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), based in Fort Campbell, Ky.; killed Nov. 23 when hostile forces attacked the vehicle in which he was riding in Mosul, Iraq.

Spc. Rel A. Ravago IV was considering studying art when he decided to enlist. "When he was 7, he was already painting really nice watercolors," said his uncle, who shares his name. "We were so proud, we would frame them." Ravago, 21, of Glendale, Calif., and stationed at Fort Campbell, Ky., was killed Nov. 23 when his vehicle was attacked in Mosul, Iraq. A day earlier, Ravago was online wishing his mother a happy birthday. He told her he had met a Filipina who worked in the Army mess hall. "He was asking his mom to teach him something in Tagalog so he could impress the girl," his uncle said. "We were all teasing (him) and laughing about it."

— Associated Press