Israel Candelaria Mejias

Wednesday, April 08 2009 @ 03:54 PM EDT

Stars and Stripes -- DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Delaware — When Spc. Israel Candelaria Mejias’ body arrived here Tuesday night, a carry team saluted the flag-draped case and moved it onto a nearby truck for transport. The whole procedure took just a few minutes.

It’s the same for every arrival, officials from the Air Force Mortuary Affairs Center said. No changes have been made since the event has been opened to the media. No extra ceremony or service is performed if family members are present, as they were Tuesday. No distinction is made if the deceased was killed in a firefight or a tragic accident away from the battlefield.

Center officials say their mission is a simple, direct service: “A solemn, dignified transfer to honor those who have given their lives in service of our country.”

Mejias, a 28-year-old killed Sunday by a mine during a firefight in Baghdad, is only the second casualty whose return was open to the press. In February, Defense Secretary Robert Gates lifted the 1991 ban on media covering the return of servicemembers’ remains, allowing families to decide if they want coverage.

Mejias’ family did not meet with reporters Tuesday but did ask for photographers and local news stations to be allowed to film his return. His wife flew separately to Delaware from Germany for the brief transfer; his family from Puerto Rico has not yet told Army officials where he’ll be buried.

The soldier was assigned to 1st Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment in Task Force 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 172nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team out of Grafenwöhr, Germany. He was the 4,263rd U.S. servicemember killed in Iraq since the start of military operations there six years ago.

Aside from a quiet prayer by a chaplain and a few “present, arms” orders from the transfer team leader, no words were spoken as Mejias body was moved off the C-17. Letters of condolence from the service and a formal honor guard come later.

Base officials won’t even call the transfer a ceremony, saying that may create an expectation or sense of obligation from grieving families. The Pentagon now does provide plane fare for three family members to witness the ceremony if they so choose, but officials said most still don’t attend the brief event.

Mejias was not the only servicemember to be returned home Tuesday night. Center officials said the remains of another servicemember was the flight from Germany, but his family asked for no media coverage. Apart from the lack of photographers, they said, his transfer was identical to Mejias’.

Dover officials received word of another transfer request later this week. They have not yet announced whether family or media will be present.

==Another news story==

GRAFENWÖHR, Germany — Members of the Grafenwöhr community paid tribute Tuesday to one of their own who was killed in Iraq.

Photo: A memorial at the Grafenwöhr, Germany, community chapel Tueday for Spc. Israel Candelaria Mejias, who died April 5 near Baghdad of wounds sustained when a mine detonated near him.

Spc. Israel Candelaria Mejias, 28, of San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico, was remembered as someone who could always be counted on to lift spirits with his sense of humor and love for martial arts, which he often practiced on his fellow soldiers.

Candelaria died April 5 near Baghdad of wounds sustained when a mine detonated near him, according to the Pentagon. Serving on his second deployment, he was assigned to 1st Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment in Task Force 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 172nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

Several letters from servicemembers were read during the ceremony. Sgt. Erick Dybvig, a close friend, remembered Candelaria’s love for martial arts. "I don’t think there is a guy in third platoon that hasn’t been kicked by him at some point," the letter said.

Dybvig also recalled that Candelaria would do anything for his wife, Angela.

"If you ever got the chance to see the two of them together you would know how much they loved each other," Dybvig said. "He spared no expense to make her happy and to better the lives of his family."

Dybvig, who had been serving since November on his second deployment with Candelaria, recalled an event when Candelaria let his wife purchase a 2,000-euro couch (about $2,740) that he swore "if it didn’t turn into Megatron he was going to sell it."

Dybvig said he would never forget his best friend, whom he called a brother.

"That’s what he was, our brother," he said. "If there was anyone you could count on to lift your spirits it was him. He always had a smile on his face and a joke at hand."

Candelaria had been extended in the Army because of stop-loss, according to Dybvig’s letter.

"All he wanted to do was get out of the Army and forge a better life for his family," Dybvig wrote. "He was going to become a helicopter pilot in Puerto Rico. He was going to buy a house and have a child of his own, which he hoped would be a son. He wanted to train his son to be a fighter, and give him everything in life that he never had."

Capt. Daniel Godbey, who served as Candelaria’s company commander for 14 months, remembered him for a different reason.

"There are two things that I will always remember about Candelaria," wrote Godbey. "The first is that he was always cold. If the temperature dropped below 95 degrees, he wanted to wear snivel gear and I always teased him about that. The second thing I will remember is his grin. It didn’t matter what was going on he always had a smile on his face, whether he was goofing around or intently focused on the task at hand."

Godbey went on to say that Candelaria had enough happiness for an entire platoon and there would definitely be a hole in the ranks without him.

"We will always carry Candelaria’s memory with us, every day, every mission," Godbey wrote.

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