Randell Olguin dies 'of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit using small arms fire'

The South Plains has lost its fourth soldier this year to the War on Terror.

Sergeant Randell Olguin died Sunday in Baghdad, after insurgents attacked his unit. The 24-year-old was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment out of Germany, but he grew up in Ralls, and is a graduate of Ralls High School.

Everyone we spoke with Tuesday told NewsChannel 11 that Sergeant Olguin always wanted to serve his country. His father says this was Olguin's second tour of duty in Iraq, but that he was able to come home before heading back overseas.

"They sent him back last August, and he was here before he got shipped back to Germany, and that's the last we saw him," Olguin's father Senaido Olguin said.

The memories come easy.

"We spent the weekend on Lake Stanford, had fun for a weekend," Senaido said.

The words, though...

"Words are hard to come by," Senaido said.

Olguin had a passion to serve, and not only his country.

"Baseball, he played football for us, ran cross-country, track, just pretty much involved with everything he could be involved with, band," Olguin's former coach Billy Villarreal said.

Even with all his activities, Villarreal says Olguin always wanted to do more.

"You know, even after 9-11 and everything that had happened, he even talked about it a whole lot more and he graduated in '03, so he knew what he was getting into, which really speaks volumes of Randy and what he was about," Villarreal said.

"Through the service he met his wife, and they got married. This coming December it will be two years," Senaido said.

"He was a young man that was fighting for our county, and just like he did out on the football field or the baseball field for us, laying it on the line, he did it for our country," Villarreal said.

"We were and are still proud of him," Senaido said.

Family members are still making funeral arrangements, but they tell us they hope to lay their son to rest this weekend. Meanwhile, Olguin's wife, who lives in Germany, is making arrangements to fly here for the service.

From KCBD 11