
ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. — People knew Army Pfc. Michelangelo Mora wherever he went, and everyone loved his laugh, smile and outgoing spirit.
“My son was one of these popular kids that made first impressions that nobody can forget,” his father, Mike Mora, 40, said Monday. “Just about everybody here in San Luis Obispo County knows him. How could you forget the name?”
The soldier died Friday in Iraq after his vehicle slid off the road and flipped over in Najaf, officials with the Department of Defense said in a statement. He was stationed at Fort Polk, La., and assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division.
The...