Air Force Master Sgt. Jude Mariano, 39; Died of Injuries in Auto Accident

There was little doubt what Jude Mariano would do after graduating from high school in 1983.

“Mom wanted us to go to college,” said Gerard Mariano, his older brother. “But we were pretty proud of our lineage.”

Like a great uncle who fought in World War II, his father who served two tours in Vietnam, two older brothers and nearly three dozen other family members over the years, Ben and Alejandra Mariano’s youngest child joined the military.

On Friday, Air Force Master Sgt. Jude Mariano, 39, was buried with full military honors at All Souls Catholic Cemetery in his hometown of Vallejo, Calif.

“Jude, he was proud of what he was doing,” said Ben Mariano, 70, a Navy veteran who served in Vietnam. “He called on Feb. 1, his mom’s birthday, to wish her a happy birthday. He said he would be home by April. That’s the last time we heard from him.”

A computer specialist assigned to the 615th Air Mobility Operations Squadron at Travis Air Force Base near Sacramento, Mariano was deployed on Jan. 5 to Doha, Qatar, where he died Feb. 10, five days after being injured in an automobile collision.

Navy Warrant Officer Gilbert Mariano, 42, flew from the Mediterranean to Qatar to accompany his brother’s body home to Northern California.

“Jude was a very likable guy. If you met him, if you saw his smile, you’d really like him,” said Gerard Mariano, 43, an Air Force veteran.

Jude Mariano and his wife, Aniluz, had three children: Jaclyn, 13; A.J., 9; and Justin, 5. In addition to his parents and two brothers, he also is survived by a sister, Gina Duya, 40.

Mariano was born in Long Beach, but moved with his family to Vallejo in 1974. After graduating from Vallejo High School, he enlisted in the Air Force.

The family was looking forward to Mariano’s expected return in April. “We were making plans,” his father said. “We were going to take him out, have a barbecue outside. We were very close to each other.”

Family members said they had thought Mariano would leave the military last year, but he instead extended his enlistment.

“He was promoted to master sergeant last year, and that’s probably why he decided to stay,” his father said.

Motivated by pride in their country and economic considerations, the family said, about 35 Mariano family relatives have served in the military, in every U.S. conflict since World War II.