22, of Hico, Texas; assigned to 2nd Amphibious Assault Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.; died Nov. 13, 2009 just weeks before his 23rd birthday, while supporting combat operations in Nawa, Afghanistan.

Hefner was fearless, comrades and friends said. A choked-up soldier said Hefner carried him to safety after an explosive hit their truck.

Patrick Hefner said his son loved to go camping and fishing. “If it could be done outdoors, that’s where he wanted to be,” he said.

He knew how to keep a promise to his mother, Robin, who’d asked him to take photos overseas. “They were carting him off in helicopters, and he was lying on his back taking pictures of his buddies up in front of him” after an attack last year, his father said. Other survivors include a sister and brother.