Hero’s Farewell For US Army Sergeant Angel Rampersad In New York

NEW YORK, NY – US Army Staff Sergeant Angel Rampersad, who was killed in the Iran war, was given a hero’s farewell at her funeral on August 1, attended by military officials, elected leaders and hundreds of mourners.

“My daughter was a real hero,” her mother, Carol Acevedo, said during the funeral service.

Rampersad, who immigrated to the United States from Trinidad at the age of two, was killed last month in an Iranian missile strike on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, where she had been deployed with the US Army.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who ordered flags across the state to be flown at half-staff in her honor, paid tribute to the fallen soldier.

“Staff Sergeant Rampersad lived a life of courage and selflessness. New York, and our nation, are safer because of brave Americans like her who answer the call to serve,” Hochul said.

A police motorcade led by dozens of New York Police Department motorcycle officers escorted Rampersad’s body to the funeral service at a church and later to her burial at a Long Island cemetery with full military honors. The procession was broadcast live by several local television stations.

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who attended the funeral, said in a statement, “Sgt. Rampersad’s courage and sacrifice will be remembered” across the city she called home.

“For so many New Yorkers, wars overseas are never distant, they are felt here at home,” he added.

President Donald Trump and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth received Rampersad’s remains with military honors when they arrived at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on July 22.

Rampersad was assigned to a US Army Air and Missile Defense Command unit based in Germany before being deployed to Jordan.

Rampersad was among the US service members killed in renewed fighting during the Iran conflict.(IANS)