I Googled for updates on an
earlier post, and found two stories, one in the
ModBee, one in the
Chron, that together tell a touching story and illuminate the humanity of one of our Iraq War casualties. The loss of life in Iraq has become impersonally regular, it shouldn't have.
The Chron:
"She was an angel on earth. She really was."
"If she saw someone on the street just struggling with a bag, she would get out and go help her," Lopez said. "I remember she saw a lady walking and it was raining, and she gave her a ride. We asked her, 'Did you know that woman?' She said, 'No, but -- did you know it was raining?' "
As a student at Johansen High School in Modesto, Navarro became involved with the Peer Assisted Learning program -- PALs -- working with special education children.
There, too, Navarro was committed to the limit. She took a young man named Armando -- who was a teenager in some ways, a 5-year-old in others -- under her wing, giving him lessons in everything from academics to driving.
"Armando's dream was to go to the prom, so Juana went to the prom with him," Lopez said. "Juana will forever be a part of their family."
The Bee:
Armando Bernal clutched his prom photos on Tuesday, some covered in fingerprints and wrinkled from being carried around the house so long. His date in the strappy, shiny red dress on that special night six years ago was Juana Navarro.
Bernal, 23, got a black tuxedo for the dance and the two piled into a white stretch limousine with other special education students from Bernal's class at Johansen High.
On Tuesday, Bernal said he wants a new suit again, this time for Navarro's funeral.
Marine Lance Cpl. Juana Navarro was killed Saturday in Iraq.
"I want a new suit for Juana," he said. "She was nice, wasn't she?"
Navarro, 24, died from a gunshot wound to the head Saturday in Anbar province in Iraq, said Marine Capt. Donn Puca...
Navarro spent two years in Johansen High's PALS program, where she partnered with mentally challenged students for an hour every day.
There, Navarro and Bernal soon became inseparable. Navarro spent most of her time covered in grease as she and Bernal dismantled everything from old radios to lawnmowers in the classroom's garage.
"I had to rearrange my room because there were too many flying parts," said PALS teacher Devona Degnan...
"I don't know the best way to describe their relationship because I've never seen anything like it before," Degnan said. "Armando, he's the story of Juana's life."
Bernal's mother, Jackie, said she's not sure if the news of Navarro's death has sunk in for Bernal. She said the hardest thing may be when his birthday rolls around on May 2.
"I'm sure he'll be waiting for her to call," Jackie Bernal said. "She tried to make life as normal for him as she could. What I worry about as a parent is what happens when I'm not here anymore to take care of him. I knew Juana would always be there for him."
Armando Bernal
Juana Navarro