Maj. Eduardo Caraveo

EL PASO -- An Army psychologist who was raised in both Juárez and El Paso was among the victims in the deadly shooting at Fort Hood Thursday in which 13 people were killed. Maj. Eduardo Caraveo, 52, a graduate of Bowie High School who grew up in Segundo Barrio, was in the Readiness Processing Center in Fort Hood when a gunman opened fire, killing his victims and wounding 30 others. Caraveo was described by family and friends as a "great man." "He was a very determined, successful man. He was a role model for his family," said his son Eduardo Caraveo from his home in Tucson on Saturday. Maj. Caraveo, who had been in the Army for 10 years, was to be deployed to Afghanistan for at least one year and had just arrived at Fort Hood on Wednesday. The rampage at Fort Hood has been described as one of the worst mass-killings in a U.S. military installation. Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, has been identified as the shooter. Hasan was wounded in an exchange of gunfire and remains hospitalized. Caraveo's son declined to comment on the way his father was killed and said he prefers to remember his father as happy and charismatic. Eduardo Caraveo said his father was the only one who went to college out of seven children in his family. "When my cousins saw what he did with his life, they all wanted to go to college," said Eduardo Caraveo. Maj. Caraveo's family moved from Juárez to Segundo Barrio when he was a child. He graduated from Bowie High School, then he attended the University of Texas at El Paso, where he earned a bachelor of science and then a master's in counseling in 1980. Maj. Caraveo, a 20-year clinical psychologist, completed his doctorate degree at the University of Arizona and received a post-doctorate certificate in psychopharmacology for psychologists at New Mexico State University. "He was a very accomplished person who helped a lot of people," his son added. Maj. Caraveo's older brother, Fernando Caraveo, said he was saddened by his brother's death. "I am very sad because I am very sick and now this makes it worse," said Fernando Caraveo, 71. He said his brother was a hard worker and liked school. He said the last time he saw his brother was about a year ago when they had a family reunion. Rudy Valenzuela, of Tucson, described Maj. Caraveo as his best friend. "I'm 48 years old and I had never had a friend like him," he said. Valenzuela and Maj. Caraveo met 22 years ago through mutual friends. Since then, Valenzuela said, they became very close. Valenzuela said he feels sorry about what happened at Fort Hood and how his friend died, but he doesn't want to blame anybody. In his heart, Valenzuela said, he knows Maj. Caraveo would not have hatred toward the person who took his life. "He (the shooter) had a problem with society, and part of my friend's job was to help these kind of people," Valenzuela said. Valenzuela said Maj. Caraveo may have understood what Hasan was going through if he was harassed because of his religious beliefs. Hasan's family members have told media outlets that Hasan was the target of harassment and ridicule. "He (Maj. Caraveo) was Mexican and he knew what it was to be treated differently," Valenzuela said. Caraveo's son said the family is waiting for the body to be released by the military. Maj. Caraveo is survived by his wife, Angela Rivera, who lives in Virginia, six children and six siblings -- four of whom live in El Paso.