Families share stories of those killed in Texas

The 13 people killed when an Army psychiatrist allegedly opened fire on fellow soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas, included a pregnant woman who was preparing to return home, a Spokane native who recently had a heart attack, and a newlywed who had served in Iraq. The Army has not released the names of the victims, but their families were notified Thursday and Friday, and as the day wore on, some confirmed the deaths. A look at some of the victims.

Pvt. Francheska Velez

Velez, 21, of Chicago, was pregnant and preparing to return home. A friend of Velez's, Sasha Ramos, described her as a fun-loving person who wrote poetry and loved dancing. Relatives said Velez had recently returned from deployment in Iraq and had sought a lifelong career in the Army. "She was a very happy girl and sweet," said her father, Juan Guillermo Velez.

Capt. John Gaffaney

Gaffaney, 56, was a psychiatric nurse who worked for San Diego County, Calif., for more than 20 years and had arrived at Fort Hood the day before the shooting to prepare for a deployment to Iraq. Gaffaney, who was born in Williston, N.D., had served in the Navy and later the California National Guard as a younger man, his family said. After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, he tried to sign up again for military service. Although the Army Reserves at first declined, he got the call about two years ago asking him to rejoin, said his close friend and co-worker Stephanie Powell.

"He wanted to help the boys in Iraq and Afghanistan deal with the trauma of what they were seeing," Powell said. "He was an honorable man. He just wanted to serve in any way he can." He is survived by a wife and a son.

Pfc. Aaron Thomas Nemelka

Nemelka, 19, of the Salt Lake City suburb of West Jordan, chose to join the Army instead of going on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, his uncle Christopher Nemelka said. "As a person, Aaron was as soft and kind and as gentle as they come, a sweetheart," his uncle said. "What I loved about the kid was his independence of thought." Aaron Nemelka, the youngest of four children, was scheduled to be deployed to Afghanistan in January, his family said in a statement. Nemelka had enlisted in the Army in October 2008, Utah National Guard Lt. Col. Lisa Olsen said.

Pfc. Michael Pearson

Pearson, 21, of the Chicago suburb of Bolingbrook, quit what he figured was a dead-end furniture-company job to join the military about a year ago. His mother, Sheryll Pearson, said the 2006 Bolingbrook High School graduate joined the military because he was eager to serve his country and broaden his horizons. "He was the best son in the whole world," she said. "He was my best friend, and I miss him."

Neighbor Jessica Koerber, who was with Pearson's parents when they received word Thursday their son had died, described him as a man who clearly loved his family, someone who enjoyed horsing around with his nieces and nephews, and other times playing his guitar. "That family lost their gem," she said.

Spc. Jason Dean Hunt

Hunt, 22, of Frederick, Okla., went into the military after graduating from Tipton High School in 2005 and married two months ago, his mother, Gale Hunt, said. He had served 3 ½ years in the Army, including a stint in Iraq. He had re-enlisted for six years after serving his initial two-year assignment, Gale Hunt said. Jason Hunt was previously stationed at Fort Stewart in Georgia.

Michael Grant Cahill

Cahill, 62, a Spokane native and physician assistant, had a heart attack two weeks ago and returned to work at the base as a civilian employee after taking just one week off for recovery, said his daughter Keely Vanacker. "He survived that. He was getting back on track, and he gets killed by a gunman," Vanacker said.

Cahill, of Cameron, Texas, helped treat soldiers returning from tours of duty or preparing for deployment. Often, Vanacker said, Cahill would walk young soldiers where they needed to go, just to make sure they got the right treatment. "He loved his patients, and his patients loved him," said Vanacker, 33, the oldest of Cahill's three adult children. "He just felt his job was important."

He had worked as a civilian contractor at Fort Hood for about four years, after jobs in rural health clinics and at Veterans Affairs hospitals. He and his wife, Joleen, had been married 37 years.

Staff Sgt. Justin M. DeCrow

DeCrow, 32, was helping train soldiers on how to help new veterans with paperwork and had felt safe on the Army post. "He was on a base," his wife, MaryKay DeCrow, said in a telephone interview from the couple's home at Fort Gordon, Ga., where she had hoped to be reunited with her husband once he finished his work at Fort Hood. "They should be safe there. They should be safe." The couple have a daughter, Kylah, 13.

Sgt. Amy Krueger

Krueger, 29, of Kiel, Wis., joined the Army after the 2001 terrorist attacks and had vowed to take on Osama bin Laden, her mother, Jeri Krueger said. Amy Krueger arrived at Fort Hood on Tuesday and was scheduled to be sent to Afghanistan in December, her mother told the Herald Times Reporter of Manitowoc.

Jeri Krueger recalled telling her daughter that she could not take on bin Laden by herself. "Watch me," her daughter replied.

Pfc. Kham Xiong

Xiong, 23, of St. Paul, Minn., was a father of three whose family has a history of military service. Xiong's father, Chor Xiong, is a native of Laos who fought the Viet Cong alongside the CIA in 1972; Chor's father, Kham's grandfather, also fought with the CIA; and Kham's brother, Nelson, is a Marine serving in Afghanistan. "I very mad," Xiong's father said Friday. Kham Xiong was preparing to deploy to Afghanistan, and his sister Mee Xiong said the family would be able to understand had he died in battle.

Xiong was one of 11 siblings and came to the U.S. when he was a toddler. He grew up in California, then moved to Minnesota with the family about 10 years ago, Chor Xiong said.

He was married and had three children ages 4, 2 and 10 months. The family moved to Texas in July.

Juanita Warman

Warman, 55, was a military physician assistant with two daughters and six grandchildren. Her sister, Margaret Yaggie, of Roaring Branch, Pa., told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette her sister attended Pittsburgh Langley High School and put herself through the University of Pittsburgh. She said her sister spent most of her career in the military.