Army Spc. Marcos A. Cintron

Remember Our Heroes

Army Spc. Marcos A. Cintron, 32, of Orlando, Fla.

Spc Cintron was assigned to 1st Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.; died June 16, 2011 at a medical facility in Boston of wounds suffered June 6 in Baghdad, when insurgents attacked his unit with indirect fire.

Army Specialist Marcos A. Cintron, 32, of Orlando, Fla., died Thursday at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was in a coma as a result of wounds suffered in a June 6 attack in Baghdad, according to his family and the Department of Defense.

“He wasn’t conscious, but I know that he knew that his family were there and that we were struggling for him,” said Cintron’s father, Wilfrido Cintron, 53, who arrived in Boston from Puerto Rico on Wednesday. “The family, we remember him as happy. We remember him as a hero.”

Marcos Cintron’s two daughters, 11 and 13, recalled a father who took them surfing and horseback riding and was “the best dad.”

Cintron’s cousin, Olga Melendez, 64, who lives in Lawrence, said he wanted to serve his country from a young age.

“Everyone is so proud of him. Ever since he was a little kid he wanted to be a soldier,” she said. “He was proud of his country.”


Cintron suffered shrapnel injuries and heavy burns when insurgents attacked his unit with indirect fire, according to the military and his family. He was flown to Germany for treatment. He was aboard a military transport plane to Texas when the air pressure caused his condition to deteriorate, family said. The plane was diverted to Boston.

Wilfrido Cintron said his son called him three days before they learned he was hurt, concerned about his safety.

“He told me, ‘Papa, we are in a dangerous place,’ ” Wilfrido Cintron said.

Cintron joined the Army 18 months ago and was in Iraq for eight months, his father said. He visited his family and celebrated the birthdays of his daughters in Puerto Rico while on leave in February.

One of six siblings, Cintron grew up in Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico, where he was a Boy Scout. “Ever since he was little, he liked the Army,” Wilfrido Cintron said. “This is what he wanted to do.