Specialist Hilda I. Ortiz Clayton was born May 21, 1991, in Augusta, Georgia. She graduated from Westside High School in 2009.
After joining the Army, in 2012 Specialist Clayton was assigned to the 55th Signal Company (Combat Camera), 21st Signal Brigade, Fort Meade. She had trained at the Defense Information School, also located at Fort Meade, and served as a combat documentation specialist.
On July 2nd, 2013, in Jalabad, Afghanistan, Specialist Clayton was photographing a live-fire training exercise. During the exercise, a mortar tube accidentally exploded, killing Clayton and four Afghan soldiers. Specialist Clayton was 22.
In her final moment, Clayton captured the explosion on her camera which survived the blast. She was the first combat documentation and production specialist to be killed in Afghanistan. At a time when the U.S. military was prioritizing training Afghan soldiers and the Pentagon had allowed women to serve in combat roles; Clayton’s role was significant in documenting both important initiatives. Today, the 55th Signal Company’s annual Combat Camera Competition is named in her honor. In 2024, one of the participants in the competition reflected, “She lives on through us, and inspires us to go harder and farther for the generations ahead of us.”
Specialist Hilda I. Ortiz Clayton is buried at Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery, Augusta, Georgia.
Sources:
https://wjla.com/news/local/hilda-clayton-of-augusta-dies-in-afghanistan-90969
https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/augustachronicle/name/hilda-clayton-obituary?id=24500997
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