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Willie De Leon’s
July 13, 1991
As related to Olga M. Rodriquez , Editor of El Uvalde Times
lost when our senior citizens stop talking or pass on to a better world.
This is the story published in Spanish in our June 8,1991 issue. At the
We appreciate very much the suggestion from Roy Luevano that we should write
request of many readers we are devoting additional space to print the version totally in English. We feel it is very important that everyone in our community should have the opportunity to know more about the bravery, the patriotism and pride with which Mexican American soldiers have always fought. Willie De Leon represents the best of our people and he should be remembered always by all. Stubborn, unexplainable traditions in our community in the past have denied Mexican American heroes their rightful recognition. The recent recommendation that the gazebo at the Uvalde Memorial Park be named for Willie De Leon is but a small token for the bravery with which Sergeant Willie De Leon fought for our country and the world.
Throughout Uvalde’s history there have been many heroes that deserve to be
a story about Mr. Guillermo (Willie) De Leon., that we may document in this manner the life of a native son that volunteered to serve his country during World War II at the age of 20 years.
His suffering was great during the five or six years that he fought bravely for the liberty of the world, yet he was already prepared for suffering, for he came from a town that in those days was not very kind to Mexican people. When he went to war the Mexican men of Uvalde were mostly laborers who were paid on the average about ten cents an hour, or perhaps six to eight dollars to clear one acre of trees and brush for farming land. Life in Uvalde for Willie De Leon was sad, as it was for all the Mexican-American people in the early forties. Yet he and all the other young Mexican men that fought in both world wars did so with the same great patriotism of the citizens who had a better life in
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S. Sgt. Guillermo (Willie) De Leon- France 1945

The first Silver Star was presented by General Mark W. Clark and the citation that accompanies the award states that it was presented “for gallantry in action on June I, 1911 in the vicinity ofValettri, Italy".
rThe detail of his bravery continues: “When the left flank of the company positions was threatened by a vigorous enemy assault, Sgt. De Leon moved to a sector near a friendly machine guns emplacement in an open wheat field and
remembered and recog- those days.
nized by all the generations that followed them . Little has been written about our Mexican-American heroes, and it is sad to realize that until their stories are documented on paper, the memories are
In recalling his life in Uvalde before going to war, Willie remembers that President Herbert Hoover had caused much bitterness for the poor people of America. “When Franklin Roosevelt
came into office,” Willie observes, “we began to see a ray of light .” With the projects for public works that created jobs, and training came at last some dignity for him and his people. Young Guillermo De Leon was the youngest from Uvalde to join the Civilian Conservation Corps ( known as C.C. Camps) where men were paid about thirty dollars per month. Each received five dollars and the remaining pay was sent home to their families. It was here that Willie learned the trade of bricklayer and rock mason, a skill that opened his way when he later entered military service. His skills earned him the rank of sergeant and he was placed in charge of various platoons and was called upon to direct important tasks during his years in the war.
When he arrived in Uvalde
he went to visit Judge C. R. Sutton, with whom he had worked, and thanks to him the Uvalde Leader News published perhaps the only article written about his glorious life as a soldier. Judge SuttonsawWillie 'slischarge papers and immediately recognized the valor those medals represented.
Willie has received for his bravery two Silver Stars, two Purple Hearts and five Bronze Stars. His first battle was at the invasion of North Africa and later after missing the battle at Sicily while recovering from illness at an army hospital, he joined his outfit, the 141st Infantry of thefamed 36th Division and fought at Salerno. He was wounded at the Rápido River in Italy. Other Battles in which he participated include Naples-Foggia, Rome-Arno,, Southern France, and Germany.
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opened fire on the attackers. When thefurious cross fire of three enemy machine guns rendered the positions almost untenable, the crew of the friendly machine gun was forced to withdraw. Sgt. De Leon, thoughtless of personal security, maintained his position and successfully defended the sector against the onrushing enemy force. When an enemy soldier crept near enough to strike Sgt. De Leon with the butt of his rifle and demand his surrender, he whir led and fired his submachine gun at the soldier, killing him. He continued to fire and delay the attachingforce until reinforcements arrived to assist him.
In many taped conversations, which are hereby transcribed by the editor of this newspaper, Mr. De Leon talks of his many remembrances with incredible detail, even though it has been almost fifty years since these events took place. We begin here with the memories of his last year during the war. In other taped conversations, which we will transcribe for future issues of this newspaper, Mr. De Leon mentions
many fellow residents of
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