Ngushėllimet mė tė sinqerta pėr familjen e Ervin Dervishit.
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Ervin Dervishi: Albanian migrant 'died a hero' in Iraq
02:47 AM CST on Tuesday, January 27, 2004
By HOLLY WARREN / The Dallas Morning News
An immigration lottery at the American Embassy in Albania brought the Dervishi family to North Texas in April 1999.
Three years later, Ervin Dervishi, the familys oldest son, joined the U.S. Army to follow his dream as a peacekeeper.
Pfc. Dervishi, 22, died during a combat patrol Saturday in Baji, Iraq, when a rocket-propelled grenade hit the Bradley fighting vehicle in which he was traveling. He was evacuated to the 28th Combat Support Hospital, where he died.
He came here a boy. He left here a man. And he died a hero, said his brother Samir, 19.
Born in 1981, he grew up in the capital city of Tirana in Albania. The country was under communist rule until 1992, when the Democratic Party won the election. The family left in 1999, as the country was heavily involved with ethnic Albanians in Kosovo. Kim Beebe, who taught in Albania for a year, has been the familys sponsor and legal guardian since they arrived.
The Dervishis initially settled in Waxahachie, where Ms. Beebe lives. The boys did not start school until the fall. Placement tests put Pfc. Dervishi, then 17, in the 10th grade at Waxahachie High School. He joined the soccer team and was named most valuable player in 2000 and 2001. He and his brother were active in the Waxahachie Police Departments Explorers Program.
He didnt just want to be a citizen, Ms. Beebe said. He wanted to be part of the society.
In fall 2001, the family moved to Fort Worth. Pfc. Dervishi attended Western Hills High School, where he graduated in May 2002. He joined the Army in October 2002.
He went through basic training in Georgia and was stationed out of Fort Hood, where he was assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division. Pfc. Dervishi was present for the arrest of Saddam Hussein.
Life [in Albania] was hard, Ms. Beebe said. Both boys had already seen war up close. They had both witnessed a lot of death and destruction and murder.
But that only spurred Pfc. Dervishi and his brother in their desire to join the military, go to college and eventually become police officers, Ms. Beebe said.
They wanted to do something about the situation, she said. Yes, he wanted to be a solider, but the whole ultimate purpose is peace.
In addition to his brother, Pfc. Dervishi is survived by his parents, Kujtim and Shpresa Dervishi of Fort Worth. Service arrangements are pending.
Gazetari:
E-mail hwarren@dallasnews.com
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