Life of Houston-based soldier honored by fellow Green Beret, family

HOUSTON (FOX 26) - One day after Veterans Day in Houston, an excruciating, real-time reminder that lives are offered and sometimes lost in defense of our nation.

Hundreds of people packed into the gymnasium of Annunciation School to pay homage to a beloved young man, an American soldier who lost his life in the service of his nation.

James 'Jimmy' Moriarty was among three U.S. Army Green Beret on a training mission who were killed after a confrontation with a Jordanian sentry erupted into gunfire.

At the memorial service on Saturday, family, friends and many of the brave soldiers who Moriarity served beside honored his skill, loyalty, patriotism and integrity.

The graduate of Strake Jesuit College Preparatory and the University of Texas was 27 years old.

"It is a parable that all of us we need to remember that we need to earn the life that we live and we need to live good lives and we need to be honest and hardworking," said James Moriarity, Jimmy's father. "We need to love family and our friends and we need to stand for things we believe in. Jimmy did that in ways that just stunned me and I thought i knew him well."

The Moriarty family has been assured by the Jordanian government that the soldier responsible for their son's death is in custody.