Subject | Collection | Story | Interviewed by |
---|---|---|---|
Vicenta Sanchez Lopez |
World War II |
By Mary Mejia In 1938, Vicenta Sanchez Lopez became the first Mexican American woman to graduate from her high school in her predominantly Anglo home town of Sonora, Texas, about 200 miles west of Austin. Just one year earlier, the first... |
Taylor Peterson |
Elvira Orta Pardo Lopez
|
World War II |
By Karina Valenzuela Elvira Orta Pardo Lopez's memories of World War II revolve around her brother, Apolonio “Polo” Pardo, Jr., whom she describes as a quiet and serious man. Polo got as far as the fifth grade before quitting to work... |
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Genaro V Lopez |
World War II |
By Simon Wagner, St. Bonaventure University World War II "actually made a man out of me," Genaro V. Lopez told his son, Genaro, during their father-to-son interview for the Voces Oral History Project. Born April 8, 1925, in... |
Mr. Genaro C. Lopez |
Joe V. Lopez |
World War II |
By Ronnie Zamora Joe Lopez can recall a time when serving in the military was the furthest thing from his mind. The idea of firing a rifle at an enemy was only a part of the childhood games he used to play with his brothers. Lopez... |
Steven Rosales |
Severo Paul Lopez |
World War II |
By Sonia Alvarez and Joe Muller Due to his father's career as a casting agent and magazine entertainment writer, Severo Lopez always held a special place in his... |
Frank Sotomayor |
Felix Angel Lopez - Santos |
World War II |
By Juan de la Cruz Felix López-Santos's early memories of his native Puerto Rico include watching everything float away from his front porch during the big San Felipe storm of 1928. After his Barrio Ceiba was washed away, his family moved... |
Doralis Perez-Soto |
David Loredo |
World War II |
By Emma Graves Fitzsimmons When David Loredo was shot in the stomach in the hills of the Philippines during World War II, his first thought was he’d never see his mother again. "I remember standing there in a daze," Loredo said. "I... |
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Derlin Rodriguez Loya |
World War II |
By Evelyn Ngugi Four days after his eighteenth birthday, rookie soldier Derlin Loya set sail for Germany on May 18, 1946. By that time, Germany and Japan had already surrendered to Allied Forces, so Loya never had to face day-to-day... |
Adolfo Dominguez |
Guadalupe R. Loya |
World War II |
By Andres Quintero When Guadalupe "Lupe" Loya, Jr. was drafted into World War II, he was working at a Civilian Conservation Corps camp in Wyoming. Loya returned to his hometown of Beeville, Texas, before heading to San Antonio to meet... |
Alcario Alvarado |
Placido Jose Lozano
|
World War II |
By Andrew Stark, St. Bonaventure University and Alicia Machuca, Cal State Fullerton On Dec. 7, 1941, Placido Jose Lozano was at a movie theater, enjoying a soda and 25-cent popcorn with his friends. Suddenly the film stopped, and the... |
Mike Zambrano |
Augustin Lucio |
World War II |
By Denise Chávarri In the Army, Agustin Lucio, a 10th-grade dropout from a farming community outside San Marcos, Texas, noticed that many other young soldiers were educated or had finished high school. So, while in training, he decided to... |
Denise Chávarri |
Eleazar M. Lugo |
Political & Civic Engagement |
By Anusha Lalani As the son of migrant farm workers, Eleazar Lugo might not have seemed a likely leader of a six-week school walkout in Uvalde, Texas. But in April of 1970, only a few weeks... |
Jorge Haynes |
Manuel Rubin Lugo |
Korean Conflict |
By Haley Dawson Manuel Lugo boarded a plane in Okinawa, Japan, in November 1969 on the last leg of his journey to Vietnam. From the U.S. mainland to Hawaii and then to Okinawa, the flights had been lively—chattering, joking, laughing. But “... |
Michelle Lojewski |
Juan Lujan |
World War II |
By Joel Weickgenant As a 20-year-old at the end of 1942, Juan Lujan remembers thinking World War II was passing him by. He wanted to participate in the war effort, but he’d promised his mother he wouldn't volunteer. In the end, it was... |
Joel Weickgenant |
Lorenza Terrones Lujano
|
World War II |
By Katie Woody Lorenza Terrones Lujano has battled prejudice, assumed a traditionally male role as an athlete and worked diligently to send all four of her children to college, an opportunity she never had. Lujano was born Sept. 5,... |
Patricia Aguirre |
Frances Rodriguez Luna |
Political & Civic Engagement |
By Joan Vinson Politics in small-town Texas were very different when Frances Luna was young. Back in the days of the poll tax, politicians would offer to cover the fee to encourage local residents to vote for them. Luna said that... |
Joan Vinson |
Lazaro Lupian |
World War II |
By Alison Kelley Lazaro Lupian doesn't think his accomplishments during World War II were a big deal; the only true war heroes, he says, are the ones that don't come back. Some would disagree, especially family members who still... |
Rene Zambrano |
Arturo Madrid
|
Political & Civic Engagement |
By: Voces Staff Arturo Madrid recalls his involvement in the South Texas Border Initiative. Madrid hosted the community groups that were also involved in the South Texas Border Initiative and wanted to establish various goals that would... |
Scarlett Gamiz |
Richard Manriquez |
Vietnam |
By Jordan Haeger Richard Manriquez served one tour in Vietnam, and he came back a changed man. He saw dead Americans, 15-year-old Vietnamese prostitutes and young suicide bombers. It took him a long time to begin to heal. "War... |
Jordan Haeger |
Johnnie Marino |
World War II |
By Robert Mayer Johnnie Marino was working as a tinsmith in Houston, having learned the trade from President Roosevelt's National Youth Administration program, when he heard about Hitler's running amok in Europe. In October of 1940,... |
Mr. Paul Rodriguez Zepeda |
Alberto Ochoa Marquez |
World War II |
By Tara Wilcox-G. Alberto Marquez remembers an autumn day in Houston in 1942 when he and a friend went out for hot dogs and, by the time they returned home, they’d decided to volunteer to fight in World War II. While... |
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Elsie Schaffer Martinez |
World War II |
By Kimberly Wied Elsie Martinez saw a lot of World War II, but she never left the country and can't talk about it. "The things we saw, and the people that came back, it was horrible," said Martinez, recalling her work in a high-... |
Raquel C. Garza |
Val Martinez
|
World War II |
By Emma Graves-Fitzsimmons Nothing prepared Val Martinez for the icy winter night he landed in Marseilles, France, with the 103rd Infantry Division to prepare for combat in World War II. Martinez would spend more than nine months as a tank... |
William Luna |
Raul Baca Martinez
|
World War II |
By Taylor Fishytnt Raul B. Martinez spent four years in the Army’s Combat Corps of Engineers in World War II. The combat engineers went in first, then the assault troops. Their job: keep the Army moving. “Our unit built new... |
Jose Figueroa |
Ascencion Martinez
|
World War II |
By Anthony Underwood Just 14 miles south of Waco lies the town of Lorena, Texas --- home to World War II Veteran Ascencion "Chon" Martinez. Born in Acampo Guanajuato, Mexico, Martinez and his family moved to the United States when... |
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Trinidad G. Martinez
|
World War II |
By David Muto Trinidad Martinez remembers the little things. Like the long list of vegetables he helped his family grow on their ranch in South Texas before World War II broke out. Thoughts like that punctuate Martinez's... |
Erika Martinez |
Porfirio Escamilla Martinez
|
World War II |
By Yazmin Lazcano The experience of stepping over hundreds of bodies -- the sounds of mine blasts, surf pelting the coast and bullets whizzing overhead filling his ears -- is as vivid to Porfirio Martinez today as it was 55 years ago.... |
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Ricardo Leon Martinez |
Vietnam |
By Mosettee Lorenz By the time he was 22, Kansas native Ricardo León Martinez had dropped out of high school, gotten married and had four children, and he was at risk of going to prison for fighting and drinking. But when he... |
Dr. Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez |
Jose Fuljencio Martinez
|
World War II |
By Tony Cantú Jose Fuljencio Martinez remembers the minutest details of his tour of duty's defining moment, his unit's surrender at Bataan, recalling virtually every tear and each bead of sweat he shed as he faced his captors. "I... |
Rea Ann Trotter |
Juan Martinez |
World War II |
By BROOKE MEHARG Juan Martinez smiled as he remembered receiving letters from proud siblings while he was stationed in the Philippines, telling him he was in their prayers. "Thanks to God that their prayers went up to heaven,"... |
Celina Moreno |
Ernesto Pedregón Martinez |
World War II |
By Nikki Muñoz Before he reached the age of 22, Ernesto Pedregón Martinez had already worked as a painter of bullfighting posters, helped liberate a Nazi concentration camp and returned home to start a new life, which would eventually lead... |
Jeffrey Lee Johnson |
Raul Mata Martinez |
World War II |
By Brian Villalobos Raul Martinez's hands, thick, square and accented by a crest of jagged, walnut-sized knuckles, don’t seem to match his large, soft eyes. Over the past 76 years, these hands have handled everything from cement to... |
Robert Mayer |
Antonio Martinez
|
Political & Civic Engagement |
Antonio "Tony" Martinez was born Dec. 31, 1945, in Harlingen, Texas, a town about 30 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. One of six children, Martinez grew up when the railroad tracks were the dividing line between Anglo-American and Mexican-American... |
Sandra Renee Garcia |
Tomas Martinez |
World War II |
By Celina Moreno Tomás Martinez, a veteran of the Normandy Invasion and the Battle of the Bulge who became a barber, has lived by a "do-it-yourself" philosophy since his youth in southern New Mexico. Born Dec. 21, 1923, to Amador... |
Marcello Salcido |
Juan Lugo Martinez |
World War II |
Tribute provided by Yolanda Guerra, daughter of Mr. Martinez. While he lived much of his youth during the Great Depression, Juan Lugo Martinez always talked about happy times, daughter Yolanda Martinez Guerra recalled in a tribute provided... |
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Mercurio & Mrs. Martinez |
Vietnam |
By Vidushi Shrimali Mercurio Martinez Jr. has never served in the armed forces, but both he and his hometown of Laredo, Texas, have been touched by veterans from World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Martinez said his... |
Frank Trejo |
John Anastacio Martinez |
World War II |
By Christopher Trout At home in Houston in the 1940s, Johnnie Martinez was a well-known entertainer. He eventually would own a nightclub, lead his own big band, the Johnnie Martinez Band, and even own his own record label, Alameda. ... |
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Luis Martinez |
World War II |
By Sarah Adams Luis Martinez has had a hand in history. He participated in one of the more famous New Deal projects, witnessed D-Day from the English shores and attended Gen. George S. Patton's funeral. But what he remembers most as... |
Nicole Cruz |
Eladio Martinez
|
World War II |
When Eladio Martinez was growing up in Dallas, Texas, education was a priority. His father was a laborer and inspired his children to learn. Like his three younger siblings, Martinez graduated from Dallas Technical High School. Growing up, the... |
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Juan Martinez |
World War II |
By Meredith Barnhill Juan Martinez, Jr. is the embodiment of the patriotism Mexican Americans demonstrated during his time in the Army. Born Nov. 20, 1922, in El Paso, Texas, to Juan Martinez, Sr. and Sebastiana Valdez Martinez, he... |
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Guadalupe Martinez |
Vietnam |
By Andrea Carpena CSU, Fullerton For many Hispanics, the Vietnam War era often led to conflicts between their deep loyalty for the United States and the emerging civil rights movement in barrios across the country, even as the... |
Maggie Rodriguez-Rivas |
John Edward Martinez |
Vietnam |
By Tarrah Miller “It’s a neat experience because you get to meet people from all over the United States, and we are working for the common good and a common goal.” That’s how John Martinez described his service aboard a submarine.... |
Tarrah Miller |
Benny C. Martinez |
Korean Conflict |
By Jackie Rapp
Benny Martinez was born a helper.
He served as a medic in the Korean War. He taught unruly 6th graders. He once delivered a baby in the back seat of a car. He encourages kids to stay in... |
Tina Hughes |
Raymundo Rafael Martinez |
World War II |
By Laken Litman One would think returned war veterans would try blocking battle out of their minds forever. But that’s not at all the case with Raymundo Rafael Martinez. Having served as a Tech Sergeant in the Army’s 807th Engineer... |
Megan Beck |
Frank Martinez |
Vietnam |
By Julia Bunch Frank Martinez, a Colorado native, was a family man and a college student in the mid-1960s. Surely, he wouldn’t be sent to Vietnam. But then he got the letter from the Army. “I didn’t think I would get... |
Rea Ann Trotter |
Augustine Martinez |
World War II |
By Angela Macias Augustinee Martinez knew little about being a solider when his 65th Infantry Division reached La Havre, France. Though Martinez trained at Camp Shelby in Mississippi, and then in France for more than a month before hitting... |
Angela Macias |
Vilma Martinez
|
Political & Civic Engagement |
By Carlos Devora From working as a lawyer to serving as president of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund to being appointed ambassador to Argentina, Vilma Martinez has been a trailblazer. Her work has helped... |
Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez |
Emily Matilda Martinez Alvarado |
Political & Civic Engagement |
By Jasmine Powell Emily Martinez Alvarado never served her country in the military. She served it at home, as one of the thousands involved in the Chicano movement, by way of the Crusade for Justice, and as an important civil rights... |
Michelle Lojewski |
Alfonso L. Matta
|
World War II |
By Christina Tran When he became vice chairman of Houston’s Metropolitan Transit Authority in 1990, Alfonso Matta would recall his closest experience with a railcar, when he was a 14-year-old on a bike. “The railcar – we had rail then... |
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Henry McDonnell |
World War II |
In 1945, Henry McDonnell battled through Germany as a part of the 17th Airborne Division; 60 years later, he returned to Europe with his sons. Henry and his three sons, Bernard, Henry Jr. and Mark, traveled to the Netherlands in 2005 so... |