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Just before Christmas 2007, a 24-year-old Prunedale native died in Iraq. Pfc. George Howell’s convoy was passing near Riyadh, in the northern part of the country, when a bomb exploded under his truck, killing him and injuring four other soldiers.
Howell left behind a wife and two children, and just before he died, he learned that a third child was on the way.
His story isn’t unusual - more than 4,000 soldiers have died over the Iraq War’s five years. But when Soledad resident Steve Williams read about Howell in the newspaper, it made an impact.
“I saw the picture of the wife and the children, and it just hit home,” Williams said.
Williams, 42, is a husband, father, soldier and veteran who served in Iraq from 2004 to 2005.
He now plays guitar in a band called Joshuas Shadow and saw an opportunity: His band could organize a local benefit concert to raise money for Kristen and her children.
“This whole band, they’re all a bunch of patriots,” Williams said. “Their parents served, they’ve got family members that have served - they’re very supportive. When I brought it up, they jumped on it.”
As band manager and public relations representative for Joshuas Shadow, Troy Symonds has taken on the role of event organizer. He’s still looking for an outdoor venue, but he knows what activities he wants to make available.
“We’re going to have music and go all day, as long as we can,” Symonds said. “We’re going to have a car show, maybe a bike show. It’s going to be a family-oriented thing. We’ll get some bounce houses for the kids, maybe some vendors (from Salinas farmers markets), some arts and crafts. Then we’re going to have a barbecue.”
After expenses, Symonds said, “everything we get goes to the family.”

thecalifornian.com