Honoree: Nicolas Parada-Rodriguez

Hometown: Stafford, VA
Branch of Service: Marine Corps
Rank: Corporal
Player: Kyreece Romero
Corporal Nicolas D. Parada-Rodriguez, 29, of Stafford, Va. was assigned to 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C. He died May 16, 2010, while supporting combat operations in Marjah, Afghanistan.
After coming to the US from El Salvador in 1991, Cpl Parada-Rodriguez, his parents and siblings settled in Springfield, Va. He went to Robert E. Lee High School, where his sister said he enjoyed being with his friends, “being their leader . . . defending people . . . always looking out for people.”
Cpl Parada-Rodriguez originally joined the Navy out of high school and was deployed to Afghanistan during his service. After his discharge, he held a civilian job for a time and then signed up again, this time in the Marines.
“He said he just liked defending his country,” his sister Norma, said. “He wanted to do something that people would remember him for.”
Cpl Parada-Rodriguez didn’t have any kids of his own, but he loved to sit with his nieces and nephews and always encouraged them to do positive things with their own lives.
He is survived by his wife, Shada.