April 13, 2004 -- The family of 22 year old Corporal Daniel Amaya was notified about his death on Easter Sunday, a holiday which will never be the same for them.

Cpl. Daniel Amaya, standing at 6' 5" tall, was always looked up to by his family.

Michele Granado- Amaya's Sister, "He was free spirited, he loved music, he loved doing things going places."

On April 11, Easter Sunday, his family was given the sad news.

Raul Enriquez- Amaya's Uncle, "It came as a surprise. But his father knew in his heart when he saw the Marines that something happened to Danny."

Today The Department of Defense announced 22 year old Daniel Amaya and another Marine died from hostile fire in Al Anban Province, Iraq. Amaya joined the Marines straight out of high school and he was part of the 3rd Battalion Marine Expeditionary Force.

Enriquez, "He told me he wanted to do his part and fight for his country and be a Marine like me and his father. We were in the Army. He wanted to do it the right way."

The family says Amaya had been back from his first deployment to Iraq for about three months. He was deployed again about a month ago. And now that this has happened, his sister wishes she wouldn't have let him go.

Granado, "Easter will never be the same for us. Next year when Easter comes, it'll be a hard thing to go through all over again."

Amaya was born and raised in El Paso but moved away. He moved to Odessa, Texas to live with his mother when he was about 13 years old.

He came back several times, he even attended Parkland High, but he eventually graduated from Odessa. His mother still lives there.

The family has not decided if Amaya will be buried at the Fort Bliss National Cemetery.