GARY, Ind.--This morning, family and friends are preparing to say their final goodbyes to a national hero. 

Twenty-four-year-old Army Ranger Spc. Ricardo Cerros Jr. was killed in firefight with insurgents in the Logar Province of Afghanistan on October 8th. He lived in Gary for a short while as a child before moving to Salinas, California to live with his father. His mother still lives in Gary area.

His funeral will be held at noon at Holy Angels Cathedral in Gary.