Led by dozens of law enforcement officers and members of the Teamster Riders, their bikes adorned with U.S. flags, the funeral procession for a 24-year-old Army specialist killed in action in Afghanistan made its way through South Pasadena streets Wednesday morning.
Spc. William "Willie'' Joseph Gilbert, a long time congregant of Holy Family Church, died May 14 of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device -- one week before the birth of his daughter, Michaela.
"He passed away at the height of his happiness,'' childhood friend Brian Zuber said during the morning's Funeral Mass at Holy Family Church. He said "Willie'' loved being in the Army as much as he loved life in general.
"There's nothing we can do to bring him back,'' Zuber said, his voice cracking. "Trust me, I've tried.
Gilbert, 24, from Hacienda Heights, was on his first combat tour, having enlisted in enlisted in August 2010, according to the L.A. Times. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, from Fort Bliss, Texas. South Pasadena Police closed multiple streets Wednesday as Gilbert's motorcade arrived in the 1500 block of Fremont Avenue.
During his eulogy, Zuber told the congregation of hundreds that his best friend was a giving and sincere person who would have been a terrific father. His advice to all the friends and family suffering Gilbert's loss was to live life the way "Willie did: genuine and easy going.''
Gilbert lived in Hacienda Heights, but he'd been a regular attendee of Holy Family for some time, Monsignor Clement J. Connolly said.
A chorus of sniffing sounding through the church as Zuber recounted many stories about Gilbert. And with a catch in his voice, he added a moment of levity to the service by sharing an anecdote he said would have pleased Gilbert to no end.
"Willie'' was no stranger to flatulence, he told the somber crowd. So last week, when his buddy's widow, Monica, set their two-day-old baby on top of Gilbert's coffin, the baby, loudly and proudly, "like her dad,'' passed gas.
Through the congregation's laughter, Zuber added, "No dad could've been prouder of his daughter.''
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