Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2005 | 11:09 a.m.
As Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery workers covered the casket of 21-year-old Army Spc. Joseph L. Martinez with dirt, a woman in a long black print dress a few hundred feet away knelt at the headstone of her son.
Helena Lukac drew a heart in the dirt at the grave of her son, who was killed Oct. 30 in Iraq at age 19. The Czechoslovakian-born woman said a prayer, wept and brushed away some wind-blown desert sand that had crusted in the etchings of Marine Pfc. John Lukac's marker.
Moments earlier she had been at Martinez's grave site, lending support to other parents burying a son, the latest local casualty in the second Persian Gulf War. Martinez was killed Aug. 27 in Tal Afar, Iraq, 260 miles northwest of Baghdad, when his patrol traded fire with enemy forces using small arms.
Lukac did not know the Martinez family, nor was she sure that the two boys knew each other, although both were graduates of Durango High School, Martinez in 2002 and Lukac in 2003.
"I have such feelings for the family -- I absolutely had to be here today," Lukac said Tuesday as she walked from her son's flag-and-flower-decorated grave.
"My friends said to me why put yourself through this again. Is it worth it? I said, 'yes it is.' I must show the respect for my son and all of the others who die in this war."
Lukac was killed when an SUV filled with explosives slammed into the convoy in which he was riding.
About 150 friends, family and others gathered at Thomas More Catholic Church in Henderson and later at the veterans cemetery in Boulder City to honor Martinez, who was honored posthumously with the Bronze Star by Maj. Gen. Jack Gardner.
The citation read that Martinez "gave the ultimate sacrifice" for his country.
Martinez's fellow soldiers attending the services said his acts of unselfishness and bravery on the battlefield did not surprise them.
"Joseph was a consummate professional," said Capt. Mitch Kusmier, Martinez's first commanding officer after basic training at Fort Knox, Ky. "He was very quiet and extremely disciplined -- a go-to guy who followed every order to the letter."
Martinez was assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment based in Fort Carson, Colo. He was sent to Iraq on March 7.
Kusmier praised Martinez's family, which includes another son, Johnny Martinez, who is based at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Miss., for instilling in Joseph "great character."
Johnny Martinez attended the services, as did his brother Jason Martinez, their parents, Cindy and Larry Martinez, and Joseph Martinez's fiancee, Toni Williams.
The Rev. Patrick Render, who celebrated the 40-minute Mass, said Martinez's "life was about service," giving generously of himself to others. The priest urged the mourners not to feel sad for Martinez, but rather "share the love he gave to others. That is his legacy."
Six Army enlisted men served as pallbearers, carrying Martinez's coffin from the chapel to the foyer, where they removed the white religious shroud from the gray casket with silver-tone trim and carefully placed a large American flag on it for its 15-mile journey to Boulder City.
Prior to the graveside services, friends spoke of a soldier who stood at the ready to protect those closest to him.
"He was soft-spoken, but he also was rough and tough and ready to protect anyone," said Alexander Lucas, a classmate of Martinez, who is a junior at Northern Arizona University and plans to enter the Air Force after graduation.
"He looked out for the safety of many of his fellow soldiers who were 17 and 18 years old, and they looked up to him."
The Lucas and Martinez families moved into homes in the same neighborhood in 1997, the year the Martinez family came to Southern Nevada. The two men were in the Air Force Junior ROTC program at Durango High and graduated the same year.
During the Boulder City services, the Army color guard fired three volleys of seven rounds and taps were played.
The flag from Martinez's casket was ceremoniously folded into the traditional triangle and handed to Martinez' mother. A second folded flag was presented to his fiancee. Martinez's father accepted the Bronze Star for his son.
Then family members tossed red roses onto the casket after it was lowered into the ground.
A letter was read on behalf of Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., who had to return to Washington, D.C., Tuesday morning to vote on Hurricane Katrina aftermath legislation. Ensign wrote that Martinez's sacrifice "will not be forgotten."
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