Dominic Rocco "Rocky" Baragona
Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army
Operation Iraqi Freedom

Dominic Rocco "Rocky" Baragona was born on 14 June 1960 in Niles, OH. One of seven children, Dominic was an avid football and baseball fan. His middle name, Rocco, was chosen for Indians slugger Rocky Colavito, so he went by the nickname Rocky. 

Rocky graduated from John F. Kennedy High School in nearby Warren, OH. He was a 1982 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY.

At the time of his death, Lt. Col. Baragona was the Commanding Officer of the 19th Maintenance Battalion, Fort Sill, OK. He was killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom when a tractor-trailer jackknifed on the road and collided with his HMMWV.

The military was his career, but his family was his life. Dominic especially liked Christmas and always made a big deal of getting the family together.

Lieutenant Colonel Baragona was awarded the Bronze Star Medal.

Death and Burial

Lieutenant Colonel Dominic Rocco "Rocky" Baragona was killed in a vehicle accident in Iraq on 19 May 2003. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA, in Section 60, Site 7881.

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