SPC Camy Florexil, 20, of Philadelphia, died July 24, 2007 in Baghdad, Iraq of wounds suffered from an IED explosion. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan. SPC Florexil was born in the U.S., but spent his early years of life living with his mother in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. Later, his mother sent him to live with an aunt in Philadelphia. He attended Swenson Arts and Technology High School, where he was enrolled in the culinary arts program. In 2005, he joined the Army, and deployed to Iraq in 2006. He is survived by his mother, Carol Florexil, his father, Vital Florexil, and sister, Emanuela Florexil.

“He was fighting for freedom,” said Camy’s aunt, Marie Gerda-Pierre.

The Travis Manion Foundation honored Camy Florexil through the Character Does Matter program on Oct. 17, 2011, when his story inspired 165 students at Swenson Arts and Technology High School in Philadelphia, Pa.