WHAT IT MEANS TO ME

“It changed his views of the world, seeing what other cultures were like, how other people lived.”

Dilley High School junior Brazos Viesca thinks of the legacy imprinted on his family story by the great-grandfather who left home to serve in World War II.

“He was from here in South Texas,” Viesca says. “One day, he was called up, shipped out and he never looked back. His name was Wilson. I wasn’t old enough to know him well, because he died when I was very young, but I know that serving his country affected him. It made him the man that the family looks up to. It’s a legacy that reaches through the generations.”

Viesca is joined by classmates Dhylan Moreno and Jonathan Osio in recalling the histories of their forefathers and the impact that serving their country in uniform and answering the call to defend America’s freedom has had on their families, and how their view of Veterans Day is colored by the knowledge handed down to them.

“My step-great-grandfather is a good man,” Osio says of the veteran who has married into the family. “I think one of the first things I ever knew about him was that he is a veteran. Rogelio wears his Vietnam cap everywhere he goes. He is proud to have served. I think that in many ways it defines him.”

Moreno recalls the stories of armed forces service that he has heard over the years and the impression they have left on him.

“Yes, it’s good to hear the stories,” he says, “and I think it’s important that we listen and learn. We need to think about the context. Those were men and women who were about our age when they were called. They were still young. They were sent overseas to places they had never heard of.

“We also need to think about what happened out there,” Moreno says. “The bloodshed and the tears, you can’t measure that. But what we can measure is the freedom that they gave us. We live the lives that we have today because of them. We have the freedom to be ourselves because of what those young people did.”

Viesca, Osio and Moreno agree that those who served their country in uniform are often under-appreciated or even go unnoticed in society when their fellow community members and descendants fail to acknowledge the sacrifices made on their behalf by an earlier generation.

“He did amazing things,” Osio says of the Vietnam-era veteran he holds in high regard. “He rode in the attack helicopters over enemy territory. I don’t just think of the patriotism involved in serving your country. I also think about what it takes for a young man to go out there and actually do those things.”

“There are stories behind so many people in our community and in our daily lives,” Viesca says. “We could be at the store and not know that the person working there is a veteran who did great things for his or her country, and that they came back home and went on with their lives.

“I think that we have a better appreciation for what we have in this country when we understand what people did for us,” Viesca says. “We need to know those stories, not just so that we know more about our country’s history, but so that we can see more than just a face in the crowd.”

“We often disregard it,” Osio says of public recognition of veterans’ service. “We are in a hurry and we don’t think to stop and pay attention. It’s a loss, when we don’t acknowledge what we seem to take for granted so much these days.

“I think the people who served our country should be highly honored,” he adds. “They should be well respected.”

Moreno considers what many service personnel gave up or left behind to serve their country.

“They were willing to put everything on the line,” Moreno says of veterans who left home to fight overseas. “They do have more than meets the eye. We should know that story.”

“What does it mean to us, today? I think it means everything,” Osio says. “Maybe they knew they were doing it for their family and their loved ones, but we need to remember that they did it for the common good. They did it for me and you. They did it for the United States.”