| In the interest of speed and timeliness, this story is fed directly from the Associated Press newswire and may contain spelling or grammatical errors. |
Holtville Marine killed in Iraq is laid to rest
Wednesday April 16, 2003HOLTVILLE, Calif. (AP) Hundreds of relatives and friends, and even people who barely knew Cpl. Erik Silva, turned out Wednesday to honor the 22-year-old Marine who was killed in a firefight in Iraq.
The Rev. William Savord presided over a Mass at St. Joseph's Catholic Church, where Silva had been baptized and received his first communion.
``Now that you have freed our brother Erik from this mortal life, please make him one with the saints in heaven,'' Savord said, according to a report from The Imperial Valley Press.
Savord noted the significance of the Holy Week preceding Easter Sunday, and connected Silva's death to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
``There's a time to live and a time to die, and we don't know when that is,'' he said. ``We don't suffer alone.''
Savord concluded by recognizing that Silva ``died for our brothers and sisters in Iraq, and that is why we honor him today.''
Mourners filled the church, standing along the side aisles and spilling out the door.
Marines in uniform saluted solemnly as eight Marines carried Silva's flag-draped casket from the church, out into the bright sunshine and to a waiting hearse.
Dozens of police and fire vehicles from Imperial Valley communities accompanied the funeral procession for the infantry rifleman from Camp Pendleton who was the first from the valley to die in the war in Iraq.
A sign on a fence along the route said: ``God bless our hero Erik Silva.''
The youngest of four children, Silva was born in the Imperial Valley town of Brawley and graduated from Holtville High School, where he played the trumpet, was a drum major and a member of the varsity golf team.
Silva was killed on April 3 when his platoon was ambushed.
At the Terrace Park Cemetery, Marines fired their guns in salute and played ``Taps,'' before Silva's casket was laid in the earth.
Several family members were overcome with emotion and sobbed openly. A long line of people passed before Silva's parents and siblings to pay their respects.
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