Last Wednesday, the US Navy lost one of its angels of mercy. The Department of Defense reported that:
Hospital Corpsman Edwin Gonzalez, 22, of North Miami Beach, Fla., died Oct. 8 from wounds sustained from an improvised explosive device while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Forces, Atlantic, Camp Lejeune, N.C.
What do hospital corpsmen do? Hospital Corpsmen "perform duties as assistants in the prevention and treatment of disease and injury and assist health care professionals in providing medical care to Navy people and their families....They also serve as battlefield corpsmen with the Marine Corps, rendering emergency medical treatment to include initial treatment in a combat environment."
Edwin Gonzalez was a North Miami Beach native. He was a 2007 graduate of Dr. Michael J. Krop Senior High School in North Miami-Dade where he was a member of Junior ROTC. About 10 of his former high school JROTC classmates are now members of the military.
His high school friends called him "Superman."
"It was because he was always getting in accidents and coming out fine," said Claudia Herrera, a former high school classmate of Gonzalez's, who lived in North Miami Beach.
"He was hit by cars twice and came out without a scratch," said Victor Medina, another friend. ~source
He even has a letter S tatooed on his chest.
HC Gonalez had hoped to become a doctor.
Friends say "Gonzo," was doing what he wanted to do.
"He was a medic; he talked about becoming a doctor," said Marina Leventhal, another high school classmate. "He wanted to be a medic because he always wanted to help people." ~source
Just before deploying to the Middle East, HC Gonzalez married his girlfriend, Neshme Bazan. They met in the military, and she is currently stationed in Germany.
HP Gonzalez is the most recent of the 2014 NATO forces who have been killed in Afghanistan since 2001. Funeral plans have not yet been announced.
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Thank you, Hospital corpsman Edwin Gonzalez, for your selfless service to your fellow servicemembers and to our country. Poppies are the universal symbols of remembrance. May we always remember your caring and your bravery. Our prayers are for your wife and family.
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The purpose of the I Got the News Today series is to honor service members who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; its title is a reminder that almost every day a military family gets the terrible news about a loved one.
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