Texas Marine’s Vietnam Story Joins State’s Veteran Oral History Program
Sgt. Rafael Gonzales still remembers the night he was literally shaken into the reality of Vietnam. Lying on a slope near Da Nang with a fellow Marine nicknamed “Pitchfork,” the unexpected blast from nearby 175mm tanks sent him airborne. “I actually felt myself go up in the air for about a foot,” Gonzales recalled, “and then I said to my friend, ‘Welcome to Vietnam.'”
Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham has announced the addition of Gonzales’s oral history to the state’s Voices of Veterans program, an initiative that has already preserved the stories of more than 500 Texas veterans. Gonzales’s account joins a collection permanently housed in the Office of Veterans Records at the Texas General Land Office.
From Volunteer to Radio Operator
Unlike many of his generation, Gonzales wasn’t drafted. He volunteered for the Marines in May 1968, inspired by television coverage of a unit called Charlie Company. “I joined the United States Marines… volunteering for service instead of being drafted. I was inspired by ABC News doing a story about a Marine Corps unit,” he explained.
Boot camp in San Diego proved to be a crucible. “We had to have our eyes right in front or right behind that man’s head,” Gonzales recalled. “We went through a lot of heck.” That grueling experience would later prove invaluable. “The best thing that ever happened to you is go through all the hell you can withstand in boot camp because that right there will help you pull through some of the tough moments when you’re in battle.”
After completing training, Gonzales volunteered for battalion recon and was initially stationed in Okinawa, Japan, which served as a staging area before his deployment to Vietnam. The connection to Okinawa ran deeper than his own service – his father had been stationed there as an Army military policeman and had brought home a Japanese surrender rifle that remains a prized family possession.
“Though there are parts missing… it still looks good,” Gonzales says of the rifle. “I have it here right behind me. Every now and then, I take a look and handle it.”
The Radio’s Heavy Burden
What role would a young Marine take in the jungles of Vietnam? For Gonzales, fate intervened in a sobering way.
After arriving near Da Nang and experiencing his first taste of combat, Gonzales found himself volunteering for one of the most dangerous positions in any infantry unit – radio operator. “I ended up as a radio operator because after the previous radioman was killed, nobody wanted to volunteer to carry that extra weight,” he explained. The position came with a stark reality: “You’re the first guy they’re trying to knock out.”
The Voices of Veterans program, which documents these stories, represents the first oral history initiative by a Texas state agency focused specifically on veterans. Their testimonies are archived alongside historical documents from Texas heroes including Sam Houston, Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie, and William Barret Travis – placing modern military service in the continuum of the state’s storied history.
Preserving Texas Veterans’ Voices
Commissioner Buckingham, who chairs the Veterans Land Board, has made the program a priority. “Today, Texas Land Commissioner and Veterans Land Board Chairwoman Dawn Buckingham, M.D., is proud to introduce the next installment of the series highlighting the VLB’s Voices of Veterans oral history program,” the Land Office stated.
Texas veterans interested in sharing their own military experiences can contact the program directly at [email protected]. The only requirement is that participants must be Texas residents at the time of their interview.
For Gonzales and hundreds of others, these recorded histories ensure that the personal realities of military service – from the shock of boot camp to the jarring welcome of combat – will remain accessible long after the veterans themselves are gone. In a state that prides itself on remembering the Alamo, the program ensures that more recent sacrifices won’t be forgotten either.
