
SAN ANTONIO — Sgt. Michael Paul Barrera told his mother and stepfather that he was looking forward to returning to Central Texas on Army leave, but he didn’t get to participate in the new military program.
The remains of Barrera, who died when his tank was hit by an explosive northeast of Baghdad, were expected to arrive at San Antonio International Airport on Nov. 5
Barrera, 26, of the San Antonio suburb of Von Ormy, was one of two 4th Infantry Division soldiers killed on Oct. 28.
“We were expecting him in time for one of the holidays, and we were going to have a big party and cook a cow,” his mother, Hilda Guardiola, told the San Antonio Express-News. “My...