David Gutierrez, 35, was buried with formal military honors
Thursday afternoon under a sky streaked with wispy gray clouds.
Hundreds of friends, family members and local residents packed into
St. Mary Church prior to the graveside ceremony.
With a wide smile resembling his fallen father’s, 4-year-old Gabriel Gutierrez accepted a crisply folded American flag presented to him in memory of Staff Sgt. David H. Gutierrez. Bundled up against the cool afternoon air, the boy’s tiny face lit up as he hugged the triangle of fabric to his chest.
Too young to understand why hundreds of people were gathered around him and his family at the St. Mary Cemetery in north Gilroy, the toddler fidgeted in his seat. A few years older, his two brothers pressed their faces into the sleeves of their mother’s tan overcoat as they watched their father’s friends and fellow soldiers place eight pairs of white gloves on the gleaming silver casket.
David Gutierrez, 35, was buried with formal military honors Thursday afternoon under a sky streaked with wispy gray clouds. Hundreds of friends, family members and local residents packed into St. Mary Church prior to the graveside ceremony. Wearing Hawaiian shirts in honor of the five years their father was stationed in the Schofield Barracks in Wahiawa, Hawaii, Gutierrez’s sons trailed behind their father’s casket. Eight pall bearers, some of whom wore full military attire, others who clenched their jaws and fought back tears, carried their fallen friend and comrade into the church for a two hour funeral Mass.
“He was one of the greatest people I ever met. He helped me change my life,” said Sonder Raymundo, Gutierrez’s nephew, during the Mass. Raymundo, who served in the United States Air Force and was inspired by Gutierrez’s military career, cried openly as he spoke directly to his uncle. “The only think I regret is not telling you how important you were in my life.”
For those community members who didn’t know Gutierrez personally, Father Tad Terembula explained that his life had been “snatched away far from home by a Taliban bomb.”
“He was killed by the very people he came to help,” Terembula said.
Gutierrez was killed in Afghanistan Christmas Day by a hidden roadside bomb while on patrol.
“David, you have loved your family, you have kept your faith, you have run your race,” Terembula said. “Your mission is completed.”
Gutierrez was “a family man” Terembula explained.
A photo slideshow following Communion flashed pictures of a skinny kid with a wide smile, a young man kissing his new bride, a proud father cradling each of his newborn sons. For about 10 minutes, Gutierrez’s life lit up a screen set up on the altar. Flipping a large slab of meat on the grill, throwing back a beer with his friends, sticking his tongue out at the camera – Gutierrez was larger than life, his friends said.
“The first time I met David, I was 22. He really scared the crap out of me,” laughed Staff Sgt. Raymond Diaz, 29, during the eulogy.
After losing a bet with Gutierrez, who was Diaz’s team leader, Diaz was forced to do push ups every time he saw Gutierrez.
“David had the life I really wanted,” Diaz said.
At the grave site, Diaz shared a few silent words with his friend and touched his lips to the casket before leaving.
Gutierrez’s family also received the Bronze Star Medal, awarded for bravery, the Purple Heart and the Afghanistan Campaign Medal.
More on this story, including reactions from those close to the family, will be posted tonight.
