COLONIE, N.Y. -- The parents of a local fallen soldier say their daughter's death was no accident, and they have a message they want every American to hear.

Staff Sgt. Amy Seyboth Tirador died in Iraq Wednesday. She was a ten year Army veteran. Sunday night her parents spoke publicly about how she was killed, as they wait for answers in the military's investigation. News 10's Marie Luby explains how they want their daughter to be honored.

"Amy would want something positive to come out of her death," says Colleen Murphy. Murphy remembers hanging the American flag outside her home on 9-11. Now another one flies beside it, a symbol of a fallen soldier, her oldest child.

"Amy was shot, and she did not commit suicide," Murphy says.

29-year-old Seyboth Tirador was an interrogator who worked with intelligence. The Army says she did not die in combat.

"We're trying to do the best we can with the little information we have," says Amy's father, Gerard Seyboth.

Seyboth Tirador planned to start a family next year with her Sgt. First Class husband. Her parents say she worked to change attitudes about women in the military.

"She wanted to show men that there were good women that were there to help the country, and to help everybody within whatever unit they were working in," says Murphy.

Her parents say she did that, saving another soldier's life during her first tour in Iraq.

Murphy and Seyboth want their tragedy to serve as a wake-up call. They say too many have forgotten sacrifices like their daughter's.

"People just don't even think of that, most of us, until it hits home," says Seyboth.

"When Amy came out on the tarmac, you know she had her family there. Second casket that came out had no family. I didn't know who I was sadder for," says Murphy.

They hope a simple message comes through. "What we're looking for right now is the honor that Amy deserves, and every soldier deserves," says Murphy.

Neighbors set up flags along the street where Amy's sister lives. It's a show of support and respect for her sacrifice that gives her family some comfort.

The family is still waiting for Seyboth Tirador's body to return home. They hope to have a funeral next weekend, but arrangements are not final.