In Memoriam: The Filipino American veterans who raised us

By Ed Diokno, Views from the Edge

Memorial Day, 2019 — I remember the small group of Filipino American veterans who helped raise me. 

They came to California after World War II as young men, full of hope and optimism. They didn’t know each other in the Philippines but here, they banded together sharing their experiences and supporting each other. Some brought their wives and families. 

They have all passed away. The last veteran died three years ago and was buried in his uniform. They were not perfect. Some suffered from what we now call PTSD. Some never fully adjusted to this country. Some drank too much. At least one went amok (ironically, a Filipino word) that has become part of America’s vocabulary)

However, they were survivors in more ways than one. They were:

• Brave to have fought and survived several wars on behalf of the U.S. Armed Forces, including World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War;
• Patriotic — almost to a fault — and believed fervently in the US of A;
• Courageous to choose to leave family and country they knew so well to venture to the unknown, to a new culture, a new community;
• Persistent in believing the American dream despite suffering the slings of discrimination and broken promises of citizenship and military benefits for some of them; and
• Patient, as their children became more Americanized and flouted the traditions of the old country.

There’s a bronze plaque with the names of the survivors of Bataan and Corregidor at the Veterans Memorial in a small town called Pittsburg in California where they established roots, raised their families and formed the nucleus of  a community. Every family knew every family and knew the children by name. None of us kids got away with anything.

We remain indebted to that generation of fathers, grandfathers and uncles — and their wives who put up for so much and were often left to raise their families on their own as the menfolk went to war. That generation paved the way for us. 

The Filipino American veterans were shorter in stature than most Americans, but as time goes by, they are remembered as giants. They had brown skin and most spoke with a heavy accent, but in many ways, they were more American than those who were born here.

They may have passed away but their family names remain around town. Their descendants are teachers, civil servants, doctors, lawyers, journalists, artists and entrepreneurs. Their children, children’s children and their great, great grandchildren have grown and mostly prospered. They are the veterans’ legacy. 

Hopefully, we made them proud.  

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