Army

By Heather Hilliard

The six months Bennie Archuleta spent in battle in Europe during World War II changed his life forever.

As a 17-year-old teenager, he had rarely traveled outside of the American Southwest. But as a soldier in the 99th Infantry Division, he found himself marching across European countries. Up to that time, he could only dream about visiting those foreign lands.

But WWII was no dream. If anything, the horrors of war proved to be a nightmare for Archuleta, nightmares that still haunt him to this day.

By Casey Zertuche

For 72-year-old Thomas Armendariz, it was difficult to conjure up memories of World War II, though he does recall being assigned to a unit that included many Mexican Americans.

"I wasn't a volunteer. I was drafted," Armendariz said.

Induction into the Army in San Antonio was followed by basic training then assignment to Greenland for two months.

"I was too cold and I wanted to transfer to Salerno because I wanted to join the 36th Infantry Division," said Armendariz, who was born and raised in considerably warmer Texas.

By Kristen Clark

Homero Alvarado is a true American hero.

By Kathryn Wilson

A pile of manure saved the life of Benjamin Alvarado during World War II in 1944.

A private in Gen. George S. Patton's Third Army, he served in the 317th Infantry Regiment of the 80th Infantry Division. Alvarado and three other soldiers were positioned as outposts in St. Genevieve, France. The four soldiers were in a small farmhouse when they saw German forces approaching.

By Xochitl Salazar

Juan Ramon Alires was already the father of two children, with another baby on the way, when he went to war as part of the 11th Armored Division.

Alires was drafted into the Army and assigned to the 11th Armored Division, known as the Thunderbolt Division, in 1944 at the age of 25. He was the second in his family to serve in WWII; Maximinio, his older brother, served four years.

By Rajesh Reddy

In the spring of 1945, 16-year-old Rodolfo “Rudy” Alaniz's older brother Ricardo, a rifleman with the 8th Infantry Division, was killed in Germany, an event that would alter young Alaniz’s life.

"I presented my brother's flag to my mother," said Alaniz, about Ricardo's burial. "That was the saddest part of my life."

By Ernie Garrido

Before he joined the Army in World War II, Angel Antonio Velázquez taught English at a junior high school in his hometown of Yabucoa, in the southeastern part of Puerto Rico. During the war, in the Panama Canal, his students were soldiers and his lessons revolved around the safety of handling tear gas.

Whether as a military instructor or as a private in the 346th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion, 345th Search Light Battalion, Battery B, the war experience for Velázquez was about protecting American infrastructure -- both human and territorial.

By Natalie England

Martin Vega knows what discrimination is. He saw it in his everyday life.

He even saw that everyday discrimination culminate in murder.

Vega was born in Nuevo Leon, Mexico. His family immigrated to Taylor, Texas, 36 miles northeast of Austin, in 1921, where his father worked in the cotton fields. Times weren’t easy for Mexican Americans in Texas.

"I had two cousins murdered by the police," Vega said.

During a visit in 1945, his cousins, out drinking in Taylor, got into a scuffle. According to Vega, the police fired.

By Callie Jenschke

Unlike many other Latino World War II veterans who often found themselves in a minority during their military service, Roberto Vazquez says he seldom felt the brunt of discrimination as a soldier in his division, where he was one of 7,000 Hispanics fighting shoulder to shoulder against the German army.

By Callie Jenschke

Unlike many other Latino World War II veterans who often found themselves in a minority during their military service, Roberto Vazquez says he seldom felt the brunt of discrimination as a soldier in his division, where he was one of 7,000 Hispanics fighting shoulder to shoulder against the German army.