Hundreds gather at Revere soldier's funeral

(Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff)

Nelson Rodriguez, the soldier's father, Moraima Ramirez, his wife, and Diana Ramirez, his mother, during the burial service at Woodlawn Cemetery today.

By Tania deLuzuriaga, Globe Staff

Hundreds of people, including Governor Deval Patrick and other elected officials, gathered today in Revere at the funeral for Sergeant Nelson Rodriguez Ramirez, a soldier who was killed in Afghanistan a week ago.

"Words cannot express the pain we feel today," said the Reverend Carlos Flor, who led the Mass at the Immaculate Conception Parish. "We thank God for Nelson's sacrifice and for your sacrifice, the sacrifice of his whole family."

A specialist with the New York Army National Guard, Rodriguez Ramirez, who spent his teenage years in Revere, was killed along with three others on June 21 when the truck they were riding in struck a roadside bomb.

"Extranarte es tan facil, olvidarte deficil" -- missing you is easy, forgetting you is hard -- Diana Ramirez, his mother, said during the bilingual service.

Like many at the service, she wore a T-shirt emblazoned with her son's boyish face and the words, "Vives para siempre en nuestras corazones" -- you live forever in our hearts.

• Comment
• Permalink
• Email