Prosser to lower flags in honor of Iraq veteran

Prosser Mayor Randy Taylor has requested that U.S. flags flown within the city be lowered Friday and Saturday to honor a native who served in the Marines and was a veteran of the Iraq War.

Retired Sgt. Sergio A. Pineda of Prosser died April 7 following a five-year battle with leukemia. He was diagnosed in 2012 while training for his second deployment in the Middle East, according to one of the GoFundMe accounts created to help his family.

Two GoFundMe accounts aim to raise money to aid his wife, Paula, and young daughters, Alison and Rebecca, and to install a memorial bench in his home town. According to the campaigns, he will be laid to rest in California, where his family lives.

“His sickness allowed him to spend extra time with his daughters building those special memories and moments that they will cherish forever,” said one of the accounts.

The campaign to help his family has raised $2,675 while a separate campaign to install a memorial bench has raised $1,260 of a $1,800 goal.

A public memorial service is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Sacred Heart Parish, 1905 Highland Drive.

This story was originally published May 11, 2017 at 7:35 PM with the headline "Prosser to lower flags in honor of Iraq veteran."