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Mark Escamilla

Mark Escamilla  

Political & Civic Engagement

By: Voces Staff

Mark Escamilla, who is the current President of Del Mar Community College grew up in Corpus Christi and attended college there himself. When he was of college age, the court case LULAC v. Richards was in progress and...

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Elizabeth Quinn Phelan

Raul Munoz Escobar

Raul Munoz Escobar  

World War II

By David Muto

Raul Escobar hesitates while recalling memories of bodies lying on the sands of Iwo Jima. He bows his head before continuing, repositioning a cap reading: “Once a Marine, Always a Marine.”

“I used to get so many...

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Raquel C. Garza

Concepción Alvarado Escobedo

Concepción Alvarado Escobedo  

World War II

By Sandra Freyberg

Growing up as the oldest of six girls, Concepción Alvarado Escobedo learned early what it means to take responsibility. Even when she was hardly more than a toddler she helped her mother take care of her younger sisters...

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Sandra Freyberg

Angel F. Esparza

Angel F. Esparza  

World War II

By Bianca Camaño

Education was always important in the Esparza home. So from an early age, Angel Esparza expected he and his six siblings would graduate from high school and go on to college.

Esparza attributes his high educational...

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Robert Rivas

Andrew Esparza

Andrew Esparza (left), Pinky Escoto (middle),and Shultz Wiht (right)in Bougainville Island in the South Pacific,June 1944.  

World War II

By Jacob Collazo

In the late 1930s, as war intensified in Europe, the United States was coming out of the Depression, but not yet directly involved in the War. In San Diego, a high school student named Andrew C. Esparza was biding...

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Rene Zambrano

Noe Espindola

Noe Espindola - Voces Oral History Project  

World War II

By Megan Breckenridge

Growing up in an artistic family that moved between the United States and Mexico, Noe Espindola was immersed in two cultures and languages. In time, however, he was given the opportunity to serve his native country...

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Philip Rodriguez

Manuel Espinoza

Manuel Espinoza  

World War II

By Xochitl Salazar

Manuel Espinoza's father, Concepción, was struck by lightning in 1930 while working on railroad tracks in Colorado.

The older Espinoza's death had great repercussions: His young widow, Ventura Mendoza Espinoza, and...

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Xochitl Salazar

Mary Espiritu

 

World War II, Political & Civic Engagement

By Rebecca Millner

In more than 40 years of service, Mary Espiritu De Leon received at least 45 awards and honors, recognizing her commitment to San Antonio's Latino community, and especially its women.

Her role as a spokeswoman and...

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Stephen Casanova

Antonio M. Esquivel

 

World War II

By Robin Larson

For Antonio "Tony"M. Esquivel, any romanticized remembrances of youth are tempered with memories of pervasive pre-war segregation in his hometown and the inescapable horror he endured in combat.

"I liked the service...

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Dr. Carlos G. Velez-Ibanez

Gregoria Acosta Esquivel

Gregoria Acosta Esquivel  

World War II

By Lori Slaughenhoupt

Gregoria Esquivel was strongly influenced by her uncles who served in the military during World War II. Their patriotism and involvement in the war effort helped shape her perspective on life when she was only a child...

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Laura Herrera

Rafaela Muniz Esquivel

Rafaela Esquivel, studio photograph. Esquivel served as a nurse in the ARMY Nurse Corps with the 242nd General Hospital in Sissone, France during World War II.  

World War II

By Joanne R. Sanchez

San Antonio, TX - When she was seven years old, Rafaela Muñiz Esquivel - the second oldest in the family that would eventually include 15 children - began caring for her brothers and sisters. Rafaela stayed home from...

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Drs. Joanne Rao & Mario Sanchez

Baldomero Estala

Baldomero Estala  

World War II

By David Muto

Growing up in San Antonio, Texas, Baldomero Estala relied on quiet independence.

In junior high school – from which Estala withdrew for economic reasons before fighting in World War II – he kept to himself, he says....

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Cheryl Smith Kemp

Herlinda Mendoza Buitron Estrada

Herlinda Mendoza Buitron Estrada  

World War II

By Whitney Sterling

On the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, the entire Buitron family, including all nine children, was sitting in church when the pastor...

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Gloria Monita

Jim Estrada

Jim Estrada  

Vietnam

By Lindsey Craun

Jim Estrada, a 17-year-old high school dropout, showed up for Air Force technical training in Biloxi, Mississippi.

He was surrounded by college students. But within several weeks, Estrada's intelligence emerged,...

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Lindsey Craun

Enrique Rodriguez Falcon

Enrique Rodriguez Falcon  

World War II

By Jennifer Yee

Like many veterans coming home from World War II, Henry Falcon remembers having a difficult time adjusting to American society. His return to the peace of America was a stark contrast to his three years of fierce air combat...

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Mr. Paul Rodriguez Zepeda

Lorenzo Falcon

Lorenzo Falcon  

World War II

By Karina Valenzuela

The Falcon family's military service extends beyond four brothers' time in World War II.

For one thing, Raúl, José and Alejandro would eventually each have a son who served in the military: Raúl’s oldest son, Raúl...

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Tamez Raul

John Fernandez

John Fernandez  

World War II

By Spencer Hamilton

A simple announcement for aviation cadet training at a camp in Washburn Island, Mass., piqued John Fernandez’s interest, so he applied.

He just never expected to make it.

But to the El Paso, Texas, native’s...

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Robert Rivas

Diana Fernandez

Diana Fernandez  

Political & Civic Engagement

Diana Fernandez was born in 1950 in Corpus Christi, Texas. She grew up in a newly developed, integrated neighbored designed to serve people working at the Navy base. Pursuing higher education was not a continuous topic of discussion in Fernandez’...

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Brittany Mendez

Estela Fernandez

Estela Fernandez  

World War II

By Jenn Zwillenberg

Estela Fernandez was a young woman in El Paso, Texas, when World War II began, so the battlegrounds seemed distant.

Wartime wasn’t about soldiers and combat. Instead, while her husband Johnny was away, she learned...

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Delia Esparza

Randel Zepeda Fernández

Randel Zepeda Fernández  

World War II

By Colleen Torma

Randel Zepeda Fernández was only a baby when his family moved from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, to El Paso, Texas, and then to Los Angeles. But later, as a young man, his lack of United States citizenship hampered him.

"I...

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Steven Rosales

Rafael Fíerro

Rafael Fíerro  

World War II

By Lynn Maguire

Rafael Fierro graduated from a small Texas high school in May of 1939, hoping to go to college on a basketball scholarship; but rather than donning a basketball jersey, he put on the uniform of a U.S. soldier.

"I went...

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Elizabeth Flores

Eduardo Fierro

Eduardo Fierro - Voces Oral History Project  

Vietnam

By Gilbert Song

“All gave some, some gave all” is an old adage that captures the sense of duty and honor Eduardo M. Fierro felt about his service in Vietnam.

Around noon one Sunday in May 1968, while on a sweep-and-destroy mission,...

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Frank L. Hernandez

Juana D. Flores

 

World War II

By David Muto

Juana Flores holds up a photograph her husband sent her while at war more than 60 years ago.

“For my dear wife, Juana,” script on the back of the picture reads. “The love I have for you is unforgettable.”

...

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Armando Segouia

Belisario & Mrs. Flores

Belisario & Mrs. Flores  

World War II, Korean Conflict

By J. Barrett Williams

Brigadier General Belisario Flores, who served his country for more than 40 years during three wars, retired from the Texas Air National Guard and the United States Air Force in the summer of 1986. Upon his...

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Cheryl Smith Kemp

Olga Delgado Flores

Olga Delgado Flores  

World War II

By Eric Latcham

When her new husband shipped off for the Philippines, Olga Delgado Flores was pregnant back home in El Paso, Texas.

Only 15 years old when she married 18-year-old Ramón Flores, she had dreams of a better life for her...

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Edna Amador

Rafael Flores

Rafael Flores at camp Beale in Marysville, CA north of Sacramento. He had just finished his basic training and was home in Wasco, CA on a 3-day pass.  

World War II

By Victoria Brown

Cal State, Fullerton

Rafael Flores put his life on hold when he was drafted into the U.S. Army during World War II at the age of 22. His experiences in the Army not only matured him, but also changed his outlook on...

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Moises Flores

Moises Flores  

World War II

By Deborah Bonn

During a brief trip home from the war in Japan, Moises Flores surprised a whole colony in Mexico that thought he’d been killed in combat.

Among those shocked by Flores' return was the sheriff in Chihuahua, Mexico’s...

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Joe Myers Vasquez

Ramon C. Flores

Ramon C. Flores  

World War II

By Cari Hammerstrom

Ramon C. Flores was 64 years old when the Persian Gulf War began. Struck with pangs of patriotism, the World War II veteran promptly showed up at the recruitment office and tried to enlist, but was turned away because of...

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Andrea Williams

Blandina Cardenas Flores

Blandina Cardenas Flores - Voces Oral History Project  

Political & Civic Engagement

By the Voces Staff

Former University of Texas-Pan American president Blandina “Bambi” Cardenas Flores found her life’s purpose at a very early age: working to provide quality education to students, no matter their ethnicity or their...

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Nathalia Hernandez

Raymond J. Flores

Raymond J. Flores  

World War II

By Shelby Tracy

Raymond J. Flores has always been a fighter.

He volunteered for the Army in the midst of World War II, but a defective leg kept him from fighting overseas.

His lifelong battle for freedom would be done on the...

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Violeta Dominguez

Alfred P. Flores

Alfred P. Flores  

World War II

By Soren Silkenson

When Alfred P. Flores was 16, his brother Robert, was lost in an early guided missile attack that sank his ship, the Rohna, three miles off the coast of Italy.

The sinking in the Mediterranean of the British troop...

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Jenny Achilles

Guadalupe Rodriguez Flores

Guadalupe Rodriguez Flores  

World War II

By Jeffrey McWhorter

Morning broke as the train rolled into Texarkana, Texas.

“Now don’t close your eyes,” the porter admonished a 22-year-old Bertha Flores, “because we’re getting close … and we’ll pass it real fast.”

For...

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Raquel C. Garza

Armando D Flores

Armando Flores.  

World War II

By Bettina Luis

CORPUS CHRISTI, TX-On October 21, 2000, through the efforts of former alumni, a historical marker was erected on the south side of the Nueces County courthouse dedicated to the Cheston L. Heath Grammar School. The marker...

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Bettina Luis

Johnnie W. Flores

Johnnie W. Flores and Josephine Adams, Philadelphia, Pa. 1943. Johnnie was killed in action in Germany on Dec. 12, 1944.  

World War II

By Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez

Johnnie W. Flores was the fifth of seven children born to Jose Maria and Teresa (Huizar) Flores, on a farm outside of Somerset, Texas, a community southeast of San Antonio.

In the mid-1930s, Johnnie moved to...

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Teodoro Franco

Teodoro Franco  

World War II

By Cheryl Smith

Looking at the elderly man in the brown fedora and navy blue dress coat, preening his snowy mustache with a miniature comb from his shirt pocket, one would never suspect the turbulent road he has followed throughout his life...

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Andrea Shearer

Edward Frazer

 

World War II

By Kathleen Bily

Growing up in San Antonio, Texas, Edward Frazer’s first teacher thought he was mentally disabled because he spoke only Spanish. But during his World War II service in the Philippines, that Spanish became one of his best...

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Raquel C. Garza

Leonard Vara Fuentes

Leonard Vara Fuentes  

World War II

BY LINDSAY FITZPATRICK

Even after flying several successful missions over Italy during WWII, Leonard Fuentes was prepared to continue serving his country, and remained in the military after the war, serving in Korea.

Fuentes graduated...

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Dr. Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez

Santos Acosta Fuentes

Sandy Fuentes at her home in Austin, Texas, 2000.  

World War II

By Karla González

It was 1944 and 28-year-old Santos (Sandy) Acosta had lost all hopes of meeting the man she would marry and live with for the rest of her life.

But that same year, the fantasy became a reality. Sandy Acosta met a...

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Karla Gonzalez

Toby Fuentes

Toby Fuentes shortly after the war.  

World War II

By Nora Ramirez

For 58 years, the sounds of flying bullets and torpedo explosions have tormented Toby Fuentes.

Sitting outside the porch of his house in a peaceful, almost rural area of East Austin, Fuentes recently recounted the...

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Nora Ramirez

Guy Gabaldon

 

World War II

By Ruchika Joshi

Guy Gabaldon said he stopped counting how many people he was taking prisoner in Saipan during World War II. But in a 1957 episode of the television program, "This Is Your Life," his fellow Marines credited him with single-...

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Dr. Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez

Thomas Galindo

Thomas Galindo  

World War II

By Antonio Gilb

Thomas Galindo was working at an Austin drug store selling sodas for 35 cents when he heard the shocking report on the radio. It was news that would irrevocably change the 19-year-old's life.

The date was Dec. 7, 1941...

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Antonio Gilb

Jose Galindo

 

World War II

By Lisa Cummings

When President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Nationality Act of 1940 on October 14 of that year, Jose Galindo's life would never be the same. The act allowed Mexican-born residents to be drafted or volunteer for the U.S...

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Lisa Cummings

Ramón Galindo

Ramón Galindo  

World War II

By Marta McGonagle

It was May 8, 1945. The war in Europe was over, but not for Ramón G. Galindo. After the death of Adolph Hitler, it was Galindo's 571st Anti-Aircraft Automatic Weapons Battalion that was stationed at Hitler's...

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Martamaria McGonagle

Hortense Mota Gallardo

Hortense Mota Gallardo  

World War II

By Alicia Downard

When Hortense Mota Gallardo recalls her childhood growing up in Depression-era San Antonio, Texas, she remembers the generosity of her father, Bartollo Mota, and how he not only provided for his own family, but for...

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Drs. Joanne Rao & Mario Sanchez

Reynaldo Perez Gallardo

Reynaldo Perez Gallardo (second from right) poses with other member sof the Mexican Fighter squadron in 1945.  

World War II

By Lucy Guevara

As the son of a Mexican Army general and an aficionado of airplanes since childhood, Reynaldo Perez Gallardo was a perfect candidate to join Mexico's Fighter Squadron 201, the only combat unit from that country to...

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Lucy Guevara

Elena Peña Gallego

Elena Peña Gallego  

World War II

By Lindsay Peyton

While scores of Latinos valiantly served their country amid discrimination during World War II, many -- such as Elena Gallego of Fort Stockton, Texas -- fought social battles on the homefront.

The wife of a WWII...

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Dr. Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez

Pete A. Gallego

Pete A. Gallego  

World War II

By Leslie McLain

When Pete A. Gallego returned from World War II after having helped changed the course of history, he found his hometown hadn’t undergone such dramatic transformation. Instead, the population in Alpine, Texas, had...

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Dr. Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez

Iris Galvan

Iris Galvan - Voces Oral History Project  

Political & Civic Engagement

By Rebecca Chavoya

An old Hispanic man pushed a tamale cart down the streets of Rosenberg, Texas, in 1974. Iris Galvan, 18-year-old high school student and member of Juventud Unida, approached him with a warm, welcoming demeanor.

“...

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Rebecca Chavoya

Cipriano Gamez

 

World War II

By Ashley Tompkins

Cipriano Gamez contends he "never did anything outstanding," but many would disagree. His actions speak for themselves and for the thousands of other men who served in World War II.

Born in Belmont, Iowa, in 1922...

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William Luna

Dr. Juliet Villareal Garcia

Dr. Juliet Villareal Garcia 1  

Political & Civic Engagement

Juliet Garcia forged her own way into the all-male “club” of Texas community college presidents to become president of Brownsville’s Texas Southmost College in 1986.

Eventually, she would become the president of the University of Texas at...

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Chelsea Moreno