Carlos Bernabe PUENTE-MORALES
PUENTE-MORALES, MORALES, CONTRERAS, PUENTE, BRUSH, TRISTAN
Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 4/12/2016 at 19:29:00
September 4, 1981 --- March 26, 2016
DES MOINES -- Carlos Puente-Morales, 34, passed away Saturday, March 26, 2016. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held 8:30 a.m. Friday at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in West Des Moines with burial at the Iowa Veterans Cemetery in Van Meter, Iowa.
Carlos was born September 4, 1981 in Las Cruces, New Mexico while his father Sergio was studying for his Ph.D., and was raised there as well as in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. He moved to Ackley, Iowa to finish high school and then earned an associate degree in law enforcement from Ellsworth Community College. His law enforcement career began in Eldora, Iowa at the jail and continued in Dows and Ottumwa as a police officer before moving to Des Moines. Since April 27, 2015 he had worked as a Des Moines Police Officer for the 3rd Watch Patrol and was well respected by his fellow officers. Carlos earned his B.S. degree in criminal justice. He served in the Iowa Army National Guard as a SSG and served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He was very disciplined and had high expectations for his soldiers but they respected and trusted him. Carlos earned a combat infantry badge and an Army achievement medal. He was an active member of the Knights of Columbus.
Carlos was a loving and dedicated son who provided morale support for his parents. They knew they could always count on him. He was a loving father, excellent brother and an amazing friend. After his brother, Sergio Antonio passed away, Carlos dedicated himself to providing unity with his nieces and nephews in order to pull the family together. Carlos was always friendly, welcoming, respectful, happy, had a great smile, and loved to joke around. He loved his religion, was community orientated, was proud of his Mexican heritage, and enjoyed watching the Tigres soccer team in Monterrey.
He is survived by his mother, Maria de Rocio Morales Contreras; brother, Alejandro (Grysel) Puente-Morales; two sons, Austin Jay Puente and Carlos Noah Puente; daughter, Sofia Guadalupe Puente; his soulmate, Samara Brush; nieces and nephews, Alexis, Sidney, Alejandro B., Ashley, Sergio Ethan, and Addyson; as well as many aunts, uncles, cousins, and extended family back in Mexico. Carlos was preceded in death by his father, Sergio Puente Tristan; brother Sergio Antonio Puente-Morales; his grandparents; and his aunt.
Visitation with the family will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday with a 7 pm. Rosary service at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. Memorial contributions may be directed to his mother so that a memorial in Carlos' name can be established to help those in need in the Des Moines area community.
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Former Franklin County deputy remembered for dedication, professionalism
DOWS — A former Franklin County sheriff’s deputy killed on duty with Des Moines police over the weekend was a dedicated father, officer and soldier, friends say.Carlos Puente-Morales, 36, died in a car crash with fellow Des Moines officer Susan Farrell early Saturday on Interstate 80 near Waukee.
The two officers were transporting a prisoner from Council Bluffs to Des Moines when their vehicle was struck head-on by another vehicle going the wrong way down the interstate.
Before going to Des Moines, Puente-Morales spent three years patrolling the city of Dows for the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office.
He was good friends with many on the department, where he worked full-time from March 2008 to August 2011.
“He wasn’t just a co-worker,” said Franklin County Chief Deputy Linn Larson.
He’d previously been a reserve deputy since April 2003.
In Dows, Puente-Morales conducted regular patrols and also attended community functions, such as the local City Council meeting.
Dows Clerk Jeanette Wenzel remembered him as friendly and said, “He always had a smile on his face.”
Upon hearing news of his death, Wenzel’s thoughts immediately went to Puente-Morales’ family and children.
“I was just shocked,” she said. “I feel bad for his family.”
In addition to his work in Franklin County, Puente-Morales worked for the Ottumwa Police Department and was deployed twice with the Iowa National Guard’s 1st Batallion, 133rd Infantry’s Charlie Company.
He spent two years, from 2005-2007, in Al Anbar province in western Iraq with the Iowa Falls-based company. In 2010 he was deployed to eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan border.
“On deployment, here training with the guys — nothing deterred him from doing the right thing and doing his job,” said Iowa National Guard Sgt. First Class Brandon Donoho.
Puente-Morales was transferred to Camp Dodge in Johnston in 2012. He had the rank of staff sergeant and was a squad leader at the time of his death.
Dononho, who served with Puente-Morales at Camp Dodge, said he believes the staff sergeant would have taken last weekend’s assignment even if he knew how it would end.
He would’ve done it to protect his fellow officers, Donoho said.
“He wouldn’t have put anyone else in that seat,” he said. “He would’ve demanded to stay in that vehicle so that no one else had to be killed that night. That’s the kind of guy Carlos was.”
Services for Puente-Morales are pending with the Ankeny Funeral Home.
In related news, officials released the name Monday of the person who crashed into the officers.
Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Safety say 25-year-old Benjamin Beary of Knoxville died at site of the fiery crash early Saturday. Police say Beary’s vehicle was traveling the wrong way on Interstate 80 when the crash occurred west of Des Moines.
The State Medical Examiner used dental records to confirm Beary’s identity.
Beary’s family released a statement Monday saying Beary was spending time with friends before the crash.
Mason City Globe Gazette - Iowa
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[former officer in Dows, Iowa]
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