Inside one he would have stuffed animals, pencils and coloring books for Iraqi kids. In the other would be 100 pounds of medical supplies — more than was usually needed.

He belonged to an intelligence team, and part of his job was finding out who was firing mortars at Logistical Support Area Anaconda or placing roadside bombs, but he was good at it all.

Cariaga, 20, was killed Friday when a bomb exploded near a Humvee he was driving back to the base on a beat-up road that the Army calls Route Heather.

Cariaga, a lanky 5-foot-10 Hawai'i National Guard soldier with an infectious smile, loved the excitement of going on missions, and was thinking of joining Special Forces when this deployment was over.

"He really wanted to be there ... when the bullets started flying," said his roommate and team leader, Sgt. Jared Chong, 25, a member of the Guard's counter-drug task force back in Hawai'i.

He also liked giving toys to children. In Iraq, bring out one toy and you get swarmed, but Cariaga didn't mind.

"If you put yourself in that position, you genuinely want to do something (to help)," said Staff Sgt. Eric Shimodoi, 29, from Pearl City.

Cariaga, known as "Dice" to his friends, was a Roosevelt High grad who lived in Kalihi and loved to surf.

He was part of the 229th Military Intelligence Company, a unit of several dozen soldiers. Three other U.S. service members, none from Hawai'i, were injured in the blast.

Cariaga's death was the first Hawai'i loss for the National Guard's 29th Brigade Combat Team in Iraq.

A memorial at which Cariaga's desert boots will be placed next to his upturned M-16 rifle topped by his helmet will be held Tuesday at LSA Anaconda.

Cariaga's death was still sinking in yesterday, and there was a new reflection on the year-long deployment to Iraq five months through.

"I honestly don't know what to say. I'm still in shock," said Pfc. Sheldon Fujiwara, 19, of Salt Lake, a Guard soldier with a medical unit who was two years behind Cariaga at Roosevelt.

The two were friends, and Cariaga practically became part of Fujiwara's family.

"He was such a great person, such a great friend, I can't believe that he's ..." Fujiwara said, unable to finish the thought.

"I feel for his parents, his mom and grandparents," Chong said. "It's a hard time for everyone."

Spc. Cariaga has been posthumously promoted to sergeant, the National Guard said.

Hawai'i National Guard and Reserve soldiers for the most part are based at Camp Victory near Baghdad International Airport; at LSA Anaconda, 50 miles north of Baghdad; and in Kuwait.

Roadside bombs are the No. 1 killer of U.S. forces in Iraq, and Hawai'i soldiers have had more than their share of close calls. The 100th Battalion, 442 Infantry at LSA Anaconda has awarded or has pending 21 Purple Hearts, most from roadside bombs.

The 229th Military Intelligence Company had "improvised explosive devices," or IEDs, go off twice near patrols about a month ago. A turret gunner with the 100th Battalion was injured in one blast.

But the death of a soldier is something new.

"I think there's a lot of anger from the soldiers. Also, disbelief that one of their own is gone," said Capt. Mike Desmond, who commands the 229th.

The unit flies small Raven unmanned aerial vehicles, has the "tactical human intelligence" mission, and also runs a Joint Intelligence Center.

Desmond said he told the soldiers "that we're here for a mission, that Spc. Cariaga believed in that mission, and he would want us to work harder to decrease the threats for other soldiers."

Cariaga, who would have turned 21 on July 28, was single. He lived with his grandparents, older brother and mother, fellow soldiers said.

He wanted to join the National Guard to be a combat engineer, but his mom wouldn't sign for him to do so as a minor, Fujiwara said. So instead, he joined the military intelligence unit.

His friends say Cariaga always excelled at physical activities, liked to run, was a longboard surfer who favored the Diamond Head side, and swam at an outdoor pool at LSA Anaconda to keep in shape.

"One of his goals was to get better in surfing. He really loved to surf," said Chong, who lives in Kailua.

On patrols, Cariaga, who was a combat lifesaver, carried a heavier-than-normal pack with extra medical supplies like IVs, just in case soldiers needed them, and often treated Iraqi children who had cuts, scratches and blisters.

"Being a medic out there, every day you are bound to fix someone," Chong said. "He was all right with that."

Desmond said Cariaga had a role in the unit of finding more than 60 mortars a few days before his death.

"He was the epitome of what I would consider a good soldier," said Shimodoi, the non-commissioned officer in charge of the intelligence team.

Chong said Cariaga "loved what he did," but for everyone who goes outside the protection of the air base, "you know that shadow (of roadside bombs) is lurking over you."