http://news.mysanantonio.com/story.c...40&xlc=1073409
San Antonian killed in Mideast is buried
By Stephen Dove
San Antonio Express-News
Web Posted : 10/23/2003 12:00 AM
Throughout nearly two hours of a funeral Wednesday, 8-year-old Tyler Branchizio showed the same steadfast resolve that endeared his dad to so many people around the world.
A mourner pays her last respects to John Branchizio after his funeral. Branchizio, a native San Antonian, was killed last week in a bomb attack in the Gaza Strip and buried Wednesday.
Gloria Ferniz/Express-News
But in the end, when an officer presented him with a crisply folded U.S. flag in honor of his fallen father, even the strength of a Navy SEAL could not have held back the tears.
Tyler's flood of emotion was shared by hundreds of mourners who packed a North Side church and later a pavilion at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery to honor the life of John Branchizio, 37, a former SEAL who died Oct. 15 in the Gaza Strip.
Branchizio, a San Antonio native and 1985 graduate of Roosevelt High School, was killed when a bomb ripped apart the armored car he was riding in as part of a U.S. Embassy security detail.
Two other Americans also died in the blast, including San Antonio resident John Linde Jr.
At the time, all three men were working for government security contractor DynCorp.
Branchizio was buried with full military honors Wednesday after a funeral at Sunset Ridge Church of Christ.
The Rev. Roy Osborne, who officiated, praised Branchizio as "a great young man and a great American."
"John lived more in 37 years than most of us live in 80," the retired pastor said as he looked over the flag-draped casket. "When he joined the SEALs he said, 'I will probably die young.' But he joined something he believed in."
Branchizio served as a SEAL for nine years before he began taking State Department security jobs overseas. During his years of military service, Branchizio was named to the SEALs' Gold Team, reserved for the best members of the elite unit.
"When he earned that honor, his family said he called home and was so excited that he didn't really need a telephone for that transcontinental call," Osborne told the audience.
Several SEALs who served with Branchizio attended the service and said they remembered him for his larger-than-life personality.
Friend Tony Parisi said everything Branchizio did, including working in the most dangerous corners of the world, was driven by his competitive spirit and love for family and country.
"John always had a gusto, a bravado about him, that really kind of defined who he was," Parisi said.
"His willingness to go into those situations just showed what kind of character he had," Parisi added.
Osborne said Branchizio will be remembered best by friends and family for his ability to build relationships.
"You didn't meet John Branchizio, you encountered him," he said.
Osborne said many of Branchizio's co-workers in Israel referred to him as "the mayor of Tel Aviv" because he was on a first-name basis with many officials and merchants in the city where he was stationed.
At a news conference the day of the blast, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher emphasized that even though Branchizio and the others killed were contract workers, department officials considered all three men "part of the embassy and part of the team."
That sympathy was emphasized at the service, which was attended by officials from Israel, the State Department, the FBI, the CIA, local law enforcement agencies and several private security companies.
A local running club coached by Branchizio's father, Ralph, is sponsoring a 14-mile charity run at 7:30 a.m. Sunday in McAllister Park to benefit Tyler's college fund. Donations will be accepted; there is no entry fee.
The family also asked that any donations in Branchizio's memory be sent to Memorial Fund: Jeanette Branchizio, 5235 Prince Valiant, San Antonio 78218; or The Luther World Relief, P.O. Box 17061, Baltimore, Md. 21298-9832.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
sdove@express-news.net