Osbaldo Orozco
Profile
Age: 26
From: Delano, Calif.
Assigned to C Company, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment based in Fort Hood, Texas
Incident: Army 1st Lt. Osbaldo Orozco was killed when his vehicle rolled over while traveling through rough terrain. His unit was the quick reaction force and was responding to enemy fire.
Died: April 25, 2003
Long before he died, Osbaldo Orozco was a hero in his hometown of Earlimart, Calif., a tiny farming community north of Fresno.
It wasn’t just that “Baldo” was a high school and college football star, or that he was the first in his family to graduate from college, or even that he had joined the Army as an officer. “He loved everybody, and everybody loved him,” said his brother, Jorge. “He was always the first one to say, ‘Hi.’ As soon as he came down the street, everyone knew Baldo, and he knew everyone.”
Orozco, 26, attended California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo on a full football scholarship.
As a sophomore, he earned the team’s third highest record ever for tackles. In his junior year, he led the team in tackles. In his...