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ALVIN, Texas—Hundreds of people holding American flags lined a highway in Southeast Texas on Wednesday to show their respect for a Texas solider who died last week in Iraq.

The body of 1st Lt. Timothy Cunningham, 26, traveled by motorcade through Southeast Texas accompanied by police officers and Patriot Guard Riders, who are motorcyclists who attend funerals of fallen soldiers. Funeral services are scheduled for Thursday in suburban Houston.

Cunningham died last week when his vehicle rolled over into a canal in Golden Hills, Iraq. The U.S. Military Academy graduate had a degree in nuclear engineering and had completed U.S. Army Ranger school.

He is survived by his wife, Samantha Cunningham, and his 1-year-old daughter, Abigail Cunningham.

Bert Dawson, an 86-year-old veteran of World War II, sat in a lawn chair along the road to catch a glimpse of the motorcade. “We’re brothers, but we’re just wars apart,” Dawson told The Facts in Brazoria County. “We got to stand behind the people who put themselves in harm’s way.”

Meanwhile Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Defense said Sgt. Mark A. Stone, 22, of Buchanan Dam, Texas, died Monday of indirect fire in Baghdad. Stone was assigned to the 94th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) at Fort Polk, La.