?Army Pfc. Rudy A. Acosta
Back in California, Rudy Acosta was well-liked by everyone at his high school, his friends said.
He performed in school plays and wasn't shy about showing his school spirit for Santa Clarita Christian School. Some remember that, as a sophomore, he went so far as to shave all his hair during spirit week and leave only "SCCS" in red-dyed letters on the back of his head.
"You can't help but smile when you think of Rudy," said classmate Taylor Tronson, 20.
The 19-year-old Acosta died March 19 in Kandahar province. The military said he was fatally wounded when a person from a military security group allegedly opened fire.
Acosta had been based in Vilseck, Germany.
His father, Dante Acosta, told the Santa Clarita Valley Signal that he was proud of his son but "heartbroken."
He told the newspaper that his son inspired others.
"He was a wonderful young man who came back a man," he said.
Acosta graduated from high school in 2009, completed Army basic training that summer and was deployed to Afghanistan on June 10. He served as a health care specialist and planned to enroll in medical school after he completed his service, his father said.
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?Air Force Senior Airman Nicholas J. Alden
As friends and family recall, there were two things Nick Alden loved: his family and serving others.
He joined the Air Force and had served in Iraq, and hoped to continue serving in law enforcement after his military career. As for his wife, the two met while working at a Walmart story in their hometown.
"Trish, I love you more than words can express," Alden wrote in a letter to his wife just before leaving for a deployment to Afghanistan. "I want to spend forever and eternity with you and the children and the rest of my family."
The couple had two children, 3-year-old Lilly and 1-year-old William.
Alden, 25, of Williamston, S.C., was gunned down March 2 outside an airport in Germany. Officials said he and another airman were killed by a radical Muslim man who started shooting at an American military bus. He was based in the United Kingdom.
His mother, Cathy Garner, said Alden was a fun-loving young man who liked soccer, paintball and online games such as World of Warcraft.
"He had a unique love of life," Dick Whisenhunt told The Independent Mail newspaper. Whisenhunt was Alden's high school chemistry teacher. "He was just a ray of sunshine."
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?Army Master Sgt. Jamal H. Bowers
Family and friends recalled Jamal Bowers as a spiritual man, always smiling, dedicated to his family.
Latricia Fletcher wrote in an online memorial that she always remembered his kindness when they met at church.
"I will always remember Mr. Bowers smiling as he would open the doors for us to enter the sanctuary," Fletcher wrote.
Bowers joined the Army in 1999 as a combat engineer, and in 2001 he was qualified in psychological operations. He had worked as an instructor in psychological operations, Army spokesman Mark Schulz told The Fayetteville Observer.
Bowers, 41, died March 18 in Djibouti. Schulz said Bowers was found dead at Camp Lemonier. He had been feeling ill the day before his death. He was assigned to Fort Bragg.
The newspaper at the Army post, Paraglide, had reported last year that Bowers' son, also named Jamal, deployed at the same time to different places. Both had completed airborne training, and the pair did a jump together at Fort Bragg.
"It was an awesome moment," the elder Bowers told Paraglide. "Once in a lifetime moment for me."
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?Army Cpl. Loren M. Buffalo
Deciding to enlist in the Army was nearly a foregone conclusion for Loren Buffalo.
The Mountain Pine, Ark., native came from a military legacy: his father was a member of the Arkansas National Guard, his uncle was in the Army and his great-grandfather flew B-17 bombers in World War II.
"He loved his country and wanted to serve it," his father, Cecil Buffalo, told The Sentinel-Record.
The younger Buffalo joined the Army in 2009, shortly after he graduated from Mountain Pine High School, according to the newspaper.
The 20-year-old died March 9 after being injured by a homemade bomb in Afghanistan's Kandahar province.
Family members say they'll remember Buffalo's love of the outdoors — he enjoyed everything from hunting to bull-riding, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. He was also a gifted musician who played guitar, bass and drums, according to The Sentinel-Record.
But above all, he was proud to serve his country.
"He was doing what he loved," his uncle, Staff Sgt. Shawn Buffalo, told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Loren Buffalo is survived by his parents and siblings among other relatives. He was assigned to Fort Campbell.
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?Army Staff Sgt. Bryan A. Burgess
Nine years after he first enlisted, Bryan Burgess was making the Army his career.
The Cleburne, Texas, native had been deployed twice to Iraq and had less than a month left before his deployment to Afghanistan was set to end.
The 29-year-old died March 29 in Konar province. Another soldier also died in the attack.
His mother told officials at the Cleburne Independent School District that her son was killed during what appeared to be an ambush.
Burgess graduated from Cleburne High School in 1999, where he was a standout athlete who played soccer, baseball and football, and ran track.
"He was a sweet guy," classmate Hillary Cochran told the school district for an article. "He always had a smile on his face. He was always friendly."
Burgess was also an active member of Granbury Street Church of Christ.
He's survived by a wife and two daughters. Burgess was assigned to Fort Campbell.
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?Army Spc. David R. Fahey Jr.
David R. Fahey was a typical American kid who grew up playing football and soccer, pulling pranks on friends and family members and beating his younger brother at video games.
But unlike many kids, he decided early that he wanted a military career and planned to join the Army when he turned 18.
The Norwalk, Conn., native followed his dream and joined the Army in 2007. He was assigned to Joint Base Lewis-McChord, where he served as a military police officer.
Fahey, 23, was serving in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, on Feb. 28 when his unit was bombed. He died in the blast.
Friends and relatives say they will remember Fahey's smile, generosity and the joy he got from his many hobbies. He loved snowboarding, fast cars and the New York Yankees.
"He lived for the moments that he had, and he appreciated each day," said his father, Tom Fahey.
Survivors also include his mother, Fran Fahey.
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?Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Vincent A. Filpi
Vincent Filpi was remembered as a dedicated husband and father who was a stickler for safety at sea.
Gina Lombardi, who taught Filpi, wrote in an online message board that he studied hard and cared about his work.
"You combined caring and compassion with a lot of humor," she wrote. "I have never forgotten you."
Filpi, 41, of Fort Walton Beach, Fla., died March 22 aboard the USS Enterprise, which had been deployed in support of the war in Afghanistan. The military has not released details about how Filpi died, other than to say he did not die in combat.
Filpi leaves behind a wife, son, and five stepchildren.
"Vince was a fantastic father who was completely devoted to our children," his wife, Erica Bruder-Filpi, told The News Herald.
Doug Filpi wrote in an online memorial that Vincent was "a great big brother" who loved his family.
Michael Kohan, a fellow sailor aboard the Enterprise, wrote that Filpi's leadership was greatly missed.
"Even in death you continue to help and train your shipmates to look out for each other," he wrote.
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?Army Staff Sgt. Joshua S. Gire
Josh Gire was eager to join the Army in 2001, but not because of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks — the reason many others joined that year. He enlisted before the attacks.
Gire, of Chillicothe, Ohio, always wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father, who served in Vietnam, and grandfather, who served in World War II, said his cousin, Kellie Uhrig.
"It was in his blood. He was very proud of what he was doing. He always wanted to serve," Uhrig told The Columbus Dispatch.
His service took him across the globe; he served in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan, and most recently was based in Bamberg, Germany.
It was in Afghanistan that his service ended. Gire, 28, was killed March 22 in Logar province after an attack on his unit.
Family members say Gire, a 2000 graduate of Huntington High School, knew the dangers and served proudly.
"He was one that I never doubted was doing his job and doing it correctly, so I always envisioned him coming home more than anyone else," another cousin, Jason Uhrig, told Columbus TV station 10TV.
Survivors include his wife, Jackie, 5-year-old son Nicholas and 2-year-old daughter Riley.
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?Army Pfc. Andrew M. Harper
Andrew Harper would talk to his girlfriend, Chelsea Smith, every night at 9:30 p.m. via video chat.
She described those Skype conversations in an online memorial: "I didn't know how much I would come to care for you, but our almost daily Skype-dates always brightened my day," she wrote.
"... that is when we talked and our relationship deepened into something I don't think either one of us expected."
Harper, 19, of Maidsville, W.Va., died March 11 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, in a noncombat related incident. He was based in Vilseck, Germany.
Smith wrote about the time they met — in Atlanta's airport Oct. 13 on the way back to Jacksonville, Fla.
"When you told me that you thought the vacant seat next to you on the plane was mine, I knew my heart was sunk," she wrote.
Harper's family wrote in an obituary that Harper was an avid Pittsburgh Steelers and West Virginia University Mountaineers fan. He also enjoyed hunting and fishing.
He graduated from University High School, where he was on the football, track and wrestling teams.
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?Air Force Senior Airman Michael J. Hinkle II
Michael J. Hinkle could find a niche for himself wherever he went, including the Black Hills of South Dakota, where he was stationed with the Air Force.
After three years in the military, he re-enlisted in 2008 and was sent to Ellsworth Air Force Base.
He was far from his Southern California home, and he took to hunting and shooting with friends and going on camping trips. He told his family he loved the area.
"Wherever Mike was, he did what the natives did," his father told the Rapid City Journal.
Hinkle, 24, died March 16. Officials at Ellsworth Air Force Base say he was found unresponsive in his barracks room in Southwest Asia and rushed to a medical center.
He did computer work, setting up secure networks for the military.
"He was trained for the Air Force by tinkering with my and his mom's computers," said his father, Michael Hinkle. "He could do a little of everything."
The Rapid City Journal reported that Hinkle, who has a brother and five stepsiblings, grew up in Corona, Calif., with his father and stepmother, Cynna Hinkle.
He spent summers and vacations in Michigan with his mother and stepfather, Teena and Robert Jakowinicz.
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?Army Pfc. Kalin C. Johnson
Kalin Johnson knew he'd probably be sent into combat, but that didn't scare him.
"He told me he wanted to be part of the action," his mother, Kay Johnson, told The State newspaper.
His fiancée, Courtney Waits, said that was what he loved to do. "He said, 'It was made for me.'"
Johnson, 19, of Lexington, S.C., died in a noncombat incident March 8 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan. He was based in Vilseck, Germany. He was a graduate of Lexington High School in 2009.
In his obituary, Johnson's family said he was an avid fan of the University of South Carolina Gamecocks. He also was a history buff who always had his headphones on, the obituary said.
His mother said he was eager to come home so he could celebrate the first birthday of his son, Logan.
The Rev. Ralph Schneck, Johnson's pastor, said the soldier also had a great sense of humor.
"He was a little crazy sometimes, a lot of laughs," Schneck said.
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?Army Pfc. Michael C. Mahr
Michael Mahr was fearless, his wife said — so much so that his Army buddies called him "Superman."
One of those closest to him was his twin brother, Matthew. Matthew's wife, Carly, wrote in an email to The Tampa Tribune that the two never went a day without talking online or on the phone, even when Michael was out of the country.
"When they get together they orbit each other," she wrote. "If one moves the other mirrors it perfectly."
Michael Mahr, 25, of Homosassa, Fla., was killed March 22 in Logar province, Afghanistan. He was based in Bamberg, Germany.
Mahr was a heavy vehicle driver — a tough job in Afghanistan, where the terrain is inhospitable and littered with roadside bombs.
Before joining the military in 2010, Mahr had played football — with his brother, of course — at Sumter High School in Bushnell. They worked together at Walmart, too. And it was a Walmart store where Michael Mahr met his wife, Stephanie.
The couple has a young son, Jadon.
Stephanie Mahr remembered her husband as a great soldier. "Everybody loved him," she said.
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?Marine Staff Sgt. James M. Malachowski
Jimmy "Ski" Malachowski sat with some Marine buddies one night, talking about how they'd spend the money paid for their deployments.
Gregory Pedrick, who served with Malachowski in Iraq, recalled the discussion. Three wanted to have fun: a motorcycle, a car, a trip to Brazil. Malachowski, just 18 at the time, was more practical: He wanted to buy a washer and dryer.
"Malachowski had to be the oldest 18-year-old I had ever met," Pedrick said. Pedrick's remarks were reported by The Carroll County Times.
Malachowski, 25, of Westminster, Md., died March 20 in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to Camp Lejeune.
Malachowski was very active and enjoyed running and woodworking, his family said. He often ran up to 10 miles a day, The Baltimore Sun reported.
"If it was heavy, Jimmy would lift it," said his mother, Alison, who also had served in the Marine Corps.
Malachowski's sister Brandy also is in the military — and when she got her commission as an officer, her brother was the first person in uniform to salute her, she said.
Malachowski leaves behind his wife, Lindsay, and sons, Vincent and Evan.
