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Funeral Held for IL Soldier Killed at Ft. Hood
CHICAGO (AP) -- Mourners wailed at a Chicago cemetery today as a 21-year-old soldier killed at Fort Hood was buried with military honors.

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn spoke at services for Private Francheska Velez, who was among 13 people killed when a fellow soldier allegedly opened fire at the Texas Army base on Nov. 5. Quinn says no one should forget Velez's sacrifice, and he called her someone very special.

Many mourners wore T-shirts with portraits of a smiling Velez, who had recently returned from deployment in Iraq because she was pregnant. Friends and family have said the 2006 Kelvyn Park High School graduate had been excited about starting a family.

Velez lay in an Army uniform in an open casket -- an American flag draped across it.

Another Illinois soldier, 22-year-old Michael Pearson of Bolingbrook, also died in the Fort Hood attack.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
11 19 09 by Newsroom
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