Gilbert Minjares, Jr.

Died: February 7, 2007

Rank: Hospital Corpsman 1st Class

Unit: Marine Aircraft Group 14, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing

Branch: U.S. Navy

Hospital Corpsman First Class Gilbert “Beto” Minjares, Jr., a Navy Hospital Corpsman, died on February 7, 2007, when his helicopter was shot down by enemy fire while his unit was conducting operations in Anbar Province, Iraq. Assigned to the Marine Aircraft Group 14, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, in Cherry Point, North Carolina, the 31-year-old Sailor had been in Iraq only seven days at the time of his death. Funeral services were held on February 20, 2007, at Saint Raphael’s Catholic Church in El Paso, Texas, with internment following at Fort Bliss Cemetery, Fort Bliss, Texas.