By Veronica Rosalez
With the many hardships that their family faced throughout World War II, military veterans Mike Villa and his brothers, Raymond and Joe, were grateful that they all returned home safely to the United States.
Raymond Villa was the eldest brother and Joe was the youngest. Mike Villa was born on May 7, 1922, in Yorktown, Texas, about 70 miles southeast of San Antonio. When Mike Villa was eight years old, Simona Hernandez-Villa, passed away from an illness.
By Ashley Hord
As an Army veteran, Joe Villa has experienced his ups and down throughout life. From coming close to death as a baby to venturing through Nazi territory, the 83-year old has seen more than what his small Texas town ever expected.
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 Mexican American man graduated from Sonora High School.
From the 1920s to the 1940s, she said, Anglos controlled Sonora and discriminated against minorities.
By Claire Carroll
“Pinda!” a corporal yelled.
The young Mexican American soldier stood quietly in line. He did not address the corporal or any of his peers.“Pinda!” the corporal bellowed out once more.
The young soldier felt nervous. It was his first day, and he couldn’t speak English proficiently.
“P-I-N-E-D-A!” the corporal spelled out impatiently.
The young Latino finally stepped forward. Before he could correct the pronunciation, the corporal screamed at him, “Wake up, soldier!”
By Trent Lesikar
“All those bullets and none of them had my name on it,” Emilio Portales said with a laugh. Portales saw action on the front lines of U.S. Army campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, France and Germany during World War II. He survived the 1944 invasion of Normandy, fought in much of the European campaign, and witnessed the liberation of a concentration camp in Germany.
By Sarah Williams
As the wife and sister of men who served in World War II, Ophelia Muñoz Rodriguez always encouraged everyone to support returning veterans, no matter what the circumstances.
Both Rodriguez and her husband worked hard to ensure that returning soldiers were well- cared for in in their community. She acknowledged that that there may be differences between past wars and current conflicts.
“It’s hard, it’s very different now-- but the soldiers do the same job,” she said.
By Diana Pena
Sitting in front of a disassembled cuckoo clock, Seferino Nino Gonzales’ demeanor gave little hint that he was a veteran of at least two wars, which he described as a “very pleasant experience.”
At the time of his interview, Gonzales worked on clocks in his own shop in Austin, Texas. But for 27 years he traveled the world, thanks to his service in the U.S. Air Force.
By Anna Kavich
By Iris Zubair
Although he had big dreams of a career playing football, Jose Mariano Soto, a young Mexican-American college student living in Laredo, Texas during the 1960s, volunteered for the Marine Corps to avoid getting drafted.
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 community always held an immense respect for war veterans.