By Cheryl Smith Kemp
When military recruiters showed up at the local Post Office in early August of 1942, Roberto De la Cruz saw it as a ticket out of the Rio Grande Valley, an escape from a lonely laborious life in South Texas.
So when a recruiter asked the 15-year-old how old he was, De la Cruz said he had just turned 18 on August 5.
A day or two later, De la Cruz and one other San Benito guy, Jerry Tarwater, were on a train headed for Houston, to get their Navy physicals.
By Laura Clark
At 5 o’clock on the morning on July 4, 1944, Ruben Ramos stood on the deck of the USS Denver and watched three squadrons of Navy Hellcat fighters take off from a nearby aircraft carrier to attack the airfields on the heavily fortified island of Iwo Jima.
This would mark the Americans’ first attack on the island that would come to forever symbolize death, sacrifice, uncommon valor and the spirit of the U.S. Marines.
By Hason Halpert
For Air Force Gunner Luis Garza, the worst thing that could have happened to him during World War II occurred before he even got overseas.
“While we were waiting [to go overseas], my mother got a notice that my brother [Pablo Garza] had been killed [in France],” Garza said. “I was playing ping pong, and my mom called and said my brother was missing. He was reported killed in action later that day.”
Rife with emotion, Garza asked for a leave of absence from his port of embarkation in Georgia.
By Jared Hill
Manuel Perez was one of the hundreds of thousands of Latino citizens forced by way of selective service to join the military after the United States joined World War II following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. And just like many other Americans, Perez had to put his own life on hold to serve his country, even though he never stepped foot on the battlefield.
Mexican immigrants Antonio Jasso and Genoveva Ramirez Jasso, who picked cotton in South Texas, would see five of their sons go off to war.
Their granddaughter, Evelyn Jasso Garcia, set out to record their story, and that of her father and uncles. An associate professor at San Antonio College, she regrets she wasn't able to interview her uncles, but gratified her dad, Jose "Joe" Jasso lived to see the fruit of her research.
Mexican immigrants Antonio Jasso and Genoveva Ramirez Jasso, who picked cotton in South Texas, would see five of their sons go off to war.
Their granddaughter, Evelyn Jasso Garcia, set out to record their story, and that of her father and uncles. An associate professor at San Antonio College, she regrets she wasn't able to interview her uncles, but gratified her dad, Jose "Joe" Jasso lived to see the fruit of her research.
Mexican immigrants Antonio Jasso and Genoveva Ramirez Jasso, who picked cotton in South Texas, would see five of their sons go off to war.
Their granddaughter, Evelyn Jasso Garcia, set out to record their story, and that of her father and uncles. An associate professor at San Antonio College, she regrets she wasn't able to interview her uncles, but gratified her dad, Jose "Joe" Jasso lived to see the fruit of her research.
By E.J. Urbanczyk
Alfred Valenzuela was an 18-year-old sailor in 1943 when he found his older brother in Hawaii.
Valenzuela recalled looking for Claudio, eight years his senior, at Schofield Barracks, a United States installation.
“He [Claudio] was very surprised when he saw me: this 18-year-old kid, the youngest one of the family, in front of his barracks … asking for him,” Valenzuela recalled.
By Jessica Eaglin
Sara Valenzuela’s strong work ethic has remained a mainstay throughout her life.
On July 31, 1924, Sara Frances Garcia was born in the small town of Edna, Texas – the first child of eight – to Henry Andrew Garcia, a mechanic, and Mary Cisneros Garcia, a homemaker.
"I was the leader of my family," Valenzuela said. "I had to be the example in my family and my role was to help my mother."
She grew up during World War II, a point in United States history that significantly changed American life, particularly for women.
By Emily Cox
Florence Gonzales Gonzalez set a strong example for her siblings and coworkers throughout her life with her hard work and efforts toward perfection.
“I became a Mrs. how-you-do-it,” said Gonzalez, recalling how she took care of her siblings.
