Marine Lance Cpl. Jose L. Maldonado

Remember Our Heroes

Marine Lance Cpl. Jose L. Maldonado, 21, of Mathis, Texas

LCpl Maldonado was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif., died Dec. 17, 2010 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.

MATHIS, TEXAS
Word spread quickly in Mathis.

On Friday, friends and associates of former Mathis High School student athlete Jose L. Maldonado began receiving text messages and phone calls.

That same day, they were told, Maldonado, 21, died while serving in Afghanistan.

“I got a message at work,” said Victor Alvarado Jr., 21. “It just said ‘Jose' and I wasn't sure it was really him.”

The lance corporal, assigned to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force from Camp Pendleton, Calif., was conducting combat operations in Helmand province when he died, according to the U.S. Department of Defense. There was no information available on how long Maldonado had served or what caused his death.

Efforts to reach his family in Mathis were not successful, but in a KRIS-TV news report, Maldonado's family said he was killed in a landmine explosion. It was the second time he stepped on a landmine, according to the report. The first did not detonate fully and he was not seriously injured, the report said.

Two former coaches and several friends described an energetic, intelligent and respectful young man who grew into a quiet but effective leader.

“He was a really great kid,” said Chris Casarez, 37, who was the head football coach at Mathis when Maldonado was on the team as a senior in 2007. “He was such a hard worker. He never let anything bring him down. I was very proud of him.”

Maldonado began attending Mathis during his sophomore year after moving there from theHouston area to live with his aunt and uncle. And while he was quiet at first, it didn't take long for him to find his niche with the other baseball and football players.

Mathis baseball coach Ray Cardona, 40, said being the new kid in such a small town can be difficult for anyone but said other students gravitated toward Maldonado and soon he became a leader on both the baseball diamond and football field.

“He didn't just come straight out and try to take over things,” Cardona said. “He got to know everyone and if he spoke up they listened. Some people just have that. It's not something you can teach.”

Both coaches said they always saw Maldonado's aunt and cousins in the stands at his games.

Friends remembered a fun-loving, easy-going teen

“He was just a cool guy,” said his former baseball and football teammate Michael Cuellar, 22. “He got a long with everybody. He didn't grow up with us but as soon as he came to Mathis everybody got along with him.”

Maldonado joined the Marines in the fall of 2007, the same year he graduated, according to published news reports.

Maldonado began attending Mathis during his sophomore year after moving there from theHouston area to live with his aunt and uncle. And while he was quiet at first, it didn't take long for him to find his niche with the other baseball and football players.

Mathis baseball coach Ray Cardona, 40, said being the new kid in such a small town can be difficult for anyone but said other students gravitated toward Maldonado and soon he became a leader on both the baseball diamond and football field.

“He didn't just come straight out and try to take over things,” Cardona said. “He got to know everyone and if he spoke up they listened. Some people just have that. It's not something you can teach.”

Both coaches said they always saw Maldonado's aunt and cousins in the stands at his games.

Friends remembered a fun-loving, easy-going teen

“He was just a cool guy,” said his former baseball and football teammate Michael Cuellar, 22. “He got a long with everybody. He didn't grow up with us but as soon as he came to Mathis everybody got along with him.”

Maldonado joined the Marines in the fall of 2007, the same year he graduated, according to published news reports.

MATHIS -- A local marine was killed in Afghanistan. 21-year old Lance Corporal Jose Maldonado of Mathis, TX died Friday while conducting combat operations in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.

"And he said, I stepped on a landmine. It didn't go off right. So when he stepped on it, it was a burst and it threw him but it just messed up his ankle and he had a concussion," said Jessica, Jose's cousin.

According to his family, Maldonado stepped on a mine last week, but was not seriously injured because it was a dud. He went back out on patrol the next day and stepped on another land mine that killed him.

Maldonado joined the Corps in 2007 and served as a rifleman with the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

According to the U.S. Marine Corps Public Affairs Department, this was Maldonado's first deployment. He joined the Marines in September 2007 and received several awards including a Purple Heart.

George, Jose's Uncle said, "I am very very proud of him. Not just for the actions, for what he did, because he's always been a proud man. And I'm saying man because I saw him grow from a boy to a young man that served his country. And with all my heart, I am very very proud of him."

"This hits hard in our community, and our hearts go out to his family," the mayor said.

School district officials found out about Maldonado’s death on Friday, and the district plans to honor him after students return from holiday break in January, she said.

As mourners trickled by the house Sunday to offer condolences, George Williams made it a point to show them two items.

The first was a U.S. flag he strung in front of the house in honor of Lance Cpl. Jose Luis Maldonado, the nephew he calls son who was killed during combat in Afghanistan on Friday.

"I want the Taliban to know, they killed our son, but they’ll never kill the American spirit we have," he said.

The second was a sheet of construction paper adorned with a picture of a Christmas tree, signed and dated in careful print by Maldonado, who was then in the fourth grade.

After the 21-year-old Maldonado died in the volatile Helmand province, Williams retreated to a room with his guitar to write a song about his nephew. There, he found hanging on the wall the picture colored with markers and glitter glue and decided to hang it near the Christmas tree. Then he noticed the date on the picture: Dec. 17, 1998, exactly 12 years before Maldonado died.

"To me, it’s like an omen," Williams said. "He’s here with us. He’s here with us."

Williams and the rest of Maldonado’s relatives have spent the past few days trying to cope with the death of the Mathis Marine, known in his family for epic wrestling matches that rumbled throughout the house, his powerful throw during family baseball games, his insatiable appetite and, most importantly, his fierce, protective love for his family, friends and country.

"He really lived and breathed the idea that what he was doing was honorable," his cousin Jessica Williams, 34, said. "He loved it. That’s what he did. That’s what made him happy. That was his purpose in life — protection — whether it was family, friends or country."

George, Jose's Uncle said, "I am very very proud of him. Not just for the actions, for what he did, because he's always been a proud man. And I'm saying man because I saw him grow from a boy to a young man that served his country. And with all my heart, I am very very proud of him."

Marine Lance Cpl. Jose L. Maldonado was killed in action on 12/17/10.