A Saddened Corona Receives Its Soldier, Home From Iraq

The funeral procession for Sgt. Alex R. Jimenez made its way from Hinton Park the few blocks to the funeral home, and church.

A Saddened Corona Receives Its Soldier, Home From Iraq

By JAVIER C. HERNANDEZ
Published: August 1, 2008
For 14 months, they waited for him. They hung the midnight-black missing-in-action banner at his home in Queens, offsetting its grimness with the bright hues of the Dominican and American flags. They dreaded another knock at the door from soldiers in uniform, but as the months dragged on, some came to crave closure most of all.

On Thursday, he came back. The police cars with flashing lights guided Sgt. Alex R. Jimenez’s coffin past the laundry, the travel agency and the minimart to 104-35 37th Drive in Corona. The procession paused in front of the bouquet of yellow and white flowers.

“You’re home, you’re home,” his friends and relatives cried as they surrounded the car holding his coffin, holding each other up for support.
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