Raymond Vega
By Israel Saenz
At the Vega home in East Chicago, Ind., during World War II, there were five blue stars in the window -- one for each of the sons serving in the military. Raymond Vega was one of them, serving aboard a ship as a hospital corpsman, tending to sick and wounded men. It was that experience that would lead him to devote his life to his faith, as a Roman Catholic priest.
Sailing in the South Pacific, aboard the USS Long Island, Vega had thoughts of being killed by a torpedo.
"When you have a thought like that for two years, you learn to pray," Vega said.