CAMP RAMADI, AR RAMADI, Iraq -- First Sgt. Dwayne W. Farr’s slow march through the dining facility here playing “Amazing Grace” on his bagpipes triggered the emotions of many Marines and Sailors sitting in attendance. Memories of their friend and comrade, Staff Sgt. Ramon E. Gonzales-Cordova, who they had gathered to pay tribute to, flooded back to them while Farr played.Servicemen with 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment held a memorial ceremony in honor of Gonzales-Cordova Aug. 17. The 31-year-old platoon sergeant from San Pedro, Honduras was killed Aug. 8 while fighting terrorism in the streets of Ar Ramadi.Lieutenant Col. Eric M. Smith, the infantry battalion’s commander, was the first to address those in attendance concerning their fallen brother-in-arms.“I knew Staff Sgt. Gonzales well,” said Smith, 39, of Plano, Texas. “He was a good Marine, friend and family man. Instead of sitting here and feeling sad for what we lost, we should be proud of him and proud for how he died. Staff Sgt. Gonzales died being a leader and a gunfighter.”Gonzales-Cordova was leading a platoon of Iraqi Security Forces and several Marines on a foot patrol through the Al Anbar capital’s streets when he was killed by an enemy sniper.Gonzales-Cordova was the platoon sergeant for 2nd Platoon, Company C, during the fighting in Fallujah last year and for the first few months of this deployment. Midway through the deployment he was selected to help train new members of the ISF and lead them on operations.“Staff Sgt. Gonzales was working with the ISF so they could (one day) assume control of securing Ramadi,” Smith continued. “He’s a Marine that made a difference. That’s something I’m very proud of.”Navy Lt. Aaron T. Miller, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines’ chaplain, followed Smith with the invocation.“He’s still a leader for us even though he’s gone,” the 32-year-old from Redlands, Calif., said. “His life and his sacrifice should lead us to be better people. We must continue to remember him and remember what he died for so that his legacy can live on.”Several Marines followed Miller and delivered eulogies. Through their words, Gonzales-Cordova was described as a man who loved being a Marine, who was always full of energy and had a caring personality and kind heart. He was a mentor, father figure and brother to many Marines he served with; most of all, though, he was a loving husband to his wife Joselyn and father to his son Sergio. After the memorial, one of Gonzales-Cordova’s Marines further reflected on the type of man he was.“He was an all around great guy,” said Lance Cpl. Nicholas T. Thompson, a rifleman with 2nd Platoon. “He was always looking out for his Marines. He cared about us.”Thompson, 22, of Boise, Idaho, had served directly under Gonzales-Cordova since the battle of Fallujah. “He was a family man, often talking about his wife and son,” continued Thompson. “All the good qualities he had in his family life he brought over to the Marine side. We were part of his family; he was always looking out for us.”Thompson said Gonzales-Cordova was friendly to the Iraqi people he encountered on patrols through the city and was genuinely concerned with their well-being, too.“His memory will live on inside of me and his Marines forever.”