Army Staff Sgt. Misael Martinez

Remember Our Heroes

Army Staff Sgt. Misael Martinez, 24, of Chapel Hill, N.C.

SSgt. Martinez was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 16th Engineer Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Giessen, Germany; died Nov. 11 of injuries sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle during combat operations in Ramadi, Iraq. Also killed were: Staff Sgt. William S. Jackson II and Sgt. Angel De Jesus Lucio Ramirez.

The military expected too much of Staff Sgt. Misael Martinez, who died when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle in Iraq, his father said.

"He went there (to Iraq) already, twice," said Juan Antonio Martinez, weary from several sleepless nights.

Misael Martinez, 24, of Chapel Hill was killed Saturday when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle during combat operations in Ramadi, the military said. His family planned to bury him Thursday.

Martinez, a combat engineer, was on his third tour in Iraq. His parents said they last spoke with their son Oct. 31, when he said he wouldn't be able to call again for several days.

The explosion also killed Staff Sgt. William S. Jackson II, 29, of Saginaw, Mich., and Sgt. Angel De Jesus Lucio Ramirez, 22, of Pacoima, Calif. All three soldiers were assigned to the 16th Engineer Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division based at Giessen, Germany.

Martinez joined the Army after graduating from Orange High School in 2000, telling his parents he needed discipline.

"He said he wanted to do something for people," his mother, Rosala Martinez, said. "I think he did it because he's a hero."

The family remembered Misael Martinez playing pickup baseball games and fishing in University Lake. Juan Antonio Martinez said his son was a bit of a prankster but was humble and respectful.

The second of four children, he had hoped to attend college, his mother said.

"You know the rest," she said

Army Staff Sgt. Misael Martinez was killed in action on 11/11/06.