(somber music) - Coming up in the next hour of local news, on "Arizona PBS, on Arizona Horizon", we celebrate Memorial Day by hearing from those who've lost loved ones and fellow service members at war.

On "Cronkite News," how rural communities were impacted by the COVID pandemic.

And on "Break It Down," I'll look at how Code Talkers for more than a dozen native communities have contributed to American military efforts.

That's coming up in the next hour on Arizona PBS.

- [Narrator] This hour of local news is made possible by contributions from the friends of PBS, members of your PBS station.

Thank you.

- Good evening and welcome to this special Memorial Day edition of Arizona Horizon, I'm Ted Simons.

Memorial Day is a special day to honor and mourn military personnel who died in the performance of their duties.

It's certainly a special day for Arizona Congressman, Ruben Gallego, who served with the 3rd battalion 25th Marine regiment in Iraq.

His company saw some of the worst fighting of the Iraq War, losing 22 Marines and a Navy Corpsman to enemy action in 8 months.

Congressman Gallego talked to us about what Memorial Day means to him.

Hey Congressman, good to see you again.

Thank you for joining us on Memorial Day here.

What does Memorial Day mean to you?

- I mean, for me, it's a very rough day, I remember all my friends that I lost but it gives me time to pause and actually, think about them and remember who they were.

I don't remember their sacrifice, I don't think about it that way, I remember who they were, what men they were and the lives that they lived.

And so I guess in that day, in that way, it does fulfill the goal of Memorial Day, but it is not a pleasant day for me.

- Yeah, yeah.

I would imagine.

Tell us your story why you decided to join the Marines and what you found when you got there.

- I think I had always wanted to join the military and largely it's just because being a first generation American, my parents were both immigrants, I felt very patriotic and I felt that I owed the nation a debt of gratitude and service and being of sound body and mind, I felt that it was my responsibility to do it.

And I joined, and didn't think it'd be a big sacrifice.

It's not like I went full time, active duty.

I joined the reserves, Marine Corps reserves.

And unfortunately we did find ourselves in a lot of combat, but, you know, that's part of the job.

It was kind of assumed that may have happened.

But my initial goal was just to be able to serve my country.

- You mentioned combat, your company saw some of the worst fighting of the Iraq War and 22 Marines and a Navy corpsman killed.

- You talked about being a rough day for you.

Talk more about what you said in that, how you remember the soldiers, because they're variety.

- Marines.

- You can remember, these Marines, I'm sorry.

These Marines.

There's a variety of ways to remember, and you tend to remember what the better times, talk to us about this.

- Yeah, I tend to remember them as I knew them when they were alive.

I don't try to remember the causes of their death.

I do grieve obviously for them.

I think it's really important especially if you have PTSD, like I do, grieving is part of the process, but I don't know if I'll do it this year but I usually go to Mass to give a little prayer for them and for their families.

I basically try to just relax on that day, because it's a very stressful day for me.

So I try not to really do anything that would require me to, I guess, like go out and be a member of Congress 'cause it's a hard day for me.

- Yeah, yeah.

You mentioned PTSD.

Losing Marines, losing friends, how did it change you?

- Well, they don't necessarily all go hand in hand.

You have PTSD for many reasons, but I am a different person from before the war and to who I am now, and it's not necessarily mean that I'm a worse person, I'm just changed and I'm learning to cope with this disease.

It doesn't make me irrational, mad, or anything like that but it is a part of my life now.

But it has also, not PTSD, but war has made me appreciate life more than anything else.

And what is worth fighting for, and also what is worth enjoying.

I now take the pleasures in the little things that I never took pleasures in before.

I now love spending, uncommitted time with just friends and family and my son and my fiance.

These are the things that I should have really appreciated before and I didn't.

And I think I also appreciate the country more.

And even though I was against Iraq War, I think, yeah, for a lot of reasons, we lost men because of bad planning, bad administration, not enough equipment.

I have a greater appreciation of this country because of what I saw and what my friends were willing to do and what I was willing to do for this country.

And it makes me feel more committed to making sure that this country continues going in the right direction.

- With that being said, as a Marine, how did just being a Marine change you?

I mean, do you see it every day of your life, the discipline, the things that you learned?

- Yeah, I mean it's interesting.

I remember before the Marine Corps, I grew up without a father and really no male figure in my life except for my grandfather.

And then he died when I was in seventh grade.

And what that does, like I never really got to develop the confidence that I think that I needed growing up.

And eventually I faked the confidence, right.

And you know, fake it till you make it.

But deep down internally at the core, I never really had a confidence I think that I needed to really push me and propel me.

The Marine Corps I think really helped me get that confidence that I was maybe seeking or trying to find.

And it made me the man that I am today.

I have been able to be very successful in my life, both in politics and in the private sector and in many areas, because I have this basic understanding of who I am, and that helps me propel forward.

Especially if you're a person of color and you're operating in a world that's not really made for you, you need to have more confidence enough to kind of break through.

So it has made me a better person, it's made me a more courageous person.

It's made me a better politician not because it helps me say I'm a Marine, but I also am not afraid to buck the party line.

Whether it's the democratic party line, the Republican party line, or just anything and stick to my core values because at the deep, deep down inside, I know who I am.

Right, and one of the things you, when you get pretty close to death, and I came pretty close to dying a lot of times, actually, you internally start looking at yourself.

You start asking yourself like who you are in this world.

And if you die tomorrow, would you be proud of yourself?

So when you have those conversations as a young man, they don't ever leave you.

And when you become an older man, now I'm at 41, it sticks to you.

And it certainly has helped me make some very hard decisions.

- Well, Congressman we thank you very much for sharing your story on this special day and we wish you the best on this day.

Thank you so much.

- Thank you.

Have a good one.

- And later in the show, the military contributions of Hispanic pilots, including one very famous baseball player who served as a Naval Aviator during World War II.

- [Narrator] She's the White House Correspondent for the PBS news hour.

- It has been a historic and dramatic week in Washington, DC.

- [Narrator] Former reporter for the New York Times, Political Analyst for NBC, and multimedia journalist at USA Today.

- Join me this week and every week for a critical look at this week's top news stories.

- [Narrator] Yamiche Alcindor, the new moderator of Washington Week.

- [Narrator 2] Friday nights at 7 on Arizona PBS.

(gentle music) - Many families spend time on this Memorial Day at grave sites, paying respect to loved ones who served in the military.

We spoke with Randy Heard, the director of the National Memorial Cemetery, about the history of that Phoenix Cemetery and some of the changes implemented due to the COVID pandemic.

- [Ted] Randy Heard, good to have you here.

Thank you so much for joining us.

We appreciate your time.

National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona.

Talk about the cemetery, its history, its importance to the state.

- Thanks for having me.

A State law was passed in 1976, signed by the Governor, for the development of a state cemetery.

The dedication was in December 9th, 1978 and the first burial occurred March 9th, 1979.

And that was turned over to the VA April 1st, 1989.

So it wasn't originally a state, veteran's state cemetery.

So there's a lot of history here, and there's a lot of heroes who retired here.

It's very important to the State of Arizona, and to the nation for that matter.

You know, they have these heroes here and to be able to honor them appropriately.

- Indeed Memorial Day now changes because of COVID, obviously big change last year.

What are we seeing this year?

- Unfortunately this year, it's going to be very similar to last year.

There will be no public ceremony.

There will be a virtual, both at Prescott and at the National Cemetery, that's the Memorial Cemetery of Arizona.

And we will do a wreath laying that won't be open to the public.

We will have military honors and we will pay our respects.

But unfortunately, due to the pandemic, we won't be able to have a public ceremony this year.

- No public ceremony, but the cemetery is still open, correct?

- That is correct.

The cemetery is open from sunup to sundown, Monday through Friday.

- Are masks required and distancing, are those kinds of things required?

- That is changing as we speak.

With all the new information that's being released, currently we are asking those that are not fully vaccinated to wear masks.

And if it's been more than two weeks since your final vaccination, you're not required to wear a mask.

That's for employees and for guests.

So, and that's changing by the minute pretty much.

- And as far as gatherings at the cemetery, Memorial Day or otherwise, are there restrictions there?

Keep it to under 50, those kinds of things?

- Our services were restricted to 50 or less.

Public gatherings we just ask that you be safe, social distance when need be.

And at the end of the day, that's the only thing that's important to us.

Is the safety of our visitors and our staff.

So we just ask that you maintain your distance and if you're sick to stay home, obviously and just be safe about the visitation.

- Because we're dealing with veterans and we're dealing with obviously folks involved with the government, do you find that it's difficult sometimes in Arizona and elsewhere to kind of mix and match guidelines between Federal and State?

- Absolutely.

Because the state regulations don't govern the federal government, and they're not always in lock step.

So it's very difficult sometimes to convey a message to someone when they're having contradictory information given to them through the local media.

So yes, it can be very difficult at times.

- And as far as updating the Memorial Cemetery here, are there any plans in place?

What's the future look like?

- Very bright future.

We have an expansion going on right now that should give burial options all the way through the year 2033.

So we have a major expansion going on now, a multimillion dollar expansion.

They're updating the administration building, they're updating their maintenance facility, they're adding almost 28,000 grave sites to what we currently have available.

So it's going to extend the life of the National Cemetery tremendously.

- It sounds great.

And last question here before you go, on a personal note is it difficult to deal with folks who want to remember and memorialize in their own way, knowing that you've got to also keep rules in place due to the pandemic?

Has it gotten a little dicey at times?

- I would have to say no.

I'm a veteran myself, I spent 20 years in the Navy and I retired and it is an absolute pleasure to explain and show sympathy and comfort, and, no, everyone may not understand, but to be in this type of job, you have to be understanding yourself and make sure that you explain it in detail and give them what they need.

And so it's an absolute pleasure for me to be in this role and I have no problem doing it.

- That's fantastic.

It's very encouraging to hear.

Randy Heard, thank you so much for joining us.

We very much appreciate it.

- Thank you, have a great day.

Thank you for having me.

(soft music) - Rare Bird is the story of Hispanic pilots, who've served in the military.

And while at one time, they were indeed rare, hundreds of these men have served in the US Military since the early days of aviation.

Horizonte host, Jose Cardenas, spoke to the author of "Rare Bird," Rudy Villarreal.

- Rudy it's so good to see you again, it's been many years since we talked about your first book about Hispanic airmen.

I wouldn't necessarily describe it as a sequel, but it's the same topic.

Tell us again, 'cause a lot of people may not have seen that first interview, how you got interested in this topic of Hispanic airman?

- That's a good question Jose.

I, coming from a small mining town of Morenci back in Eastern Arizona, I grew up at a time, this was post World War II.

Actually I'm saying it was post the Korean War and post World War II.

And I had always been interested in aviation but...

I figured well at that time you needed two years of college to get into flight school, and I was able to.

In my second year of college I started to develop problems with my eyes.

So I had to give that goal up and serve something else.

But anyway, that kind of...

I still had a real interest in aviation because I got my degree and then spent almost 30 years in aviation.

So anyway, I was at the public library in Downtown Phoenix, this was some time in the 1980s.

I was looking at some microfilm of the Arizona Republic on the screen.

And I happened to, this was, I was looking at the pages of the Arizona Republic for, oh, it must've been like September of 1945.

And what I'm looking at is the war was just over, the second World War was just over and there was a lot of young men returning home.

And I was really surprised to see so many of these young men that had Hispanic names, 'cause... - And as I understand it, part of the surprise was not so much that there were a lot of military or Hispanic served in the military in World War II, but you were surprised at the number who had been in the Air Force.

- Yes, the number who had been pilots and air crew is what really got my interest because I grew up in a mining town where the only ones, I knew a lot of veterans but they had all served in the Army and Navy, you know, the surface forces.

I had not known anybody personally that had served as a air crew member or a pilot.

- How did you go about gathering the information 'cause you literally looked at hundreds of files is my understanding?

- Yeah, that's exactly right.

Well, as I started, as I was looking at the names and the Arizona Republic, I started jotting down their names after a while, just kind of casually looking through them and jotting down their names.

And then I realized that there was a lot of them so I decided that I would look into it a little further and look at other newspapers.

They were all on microfilm there at the State Capitol.

So I started looking through microfilm of the all the dailies for Tucson, dailies for Phoenix, all the small towns in the valley.

- And you acquired quite a list.

I want to make sure we talk about some of the specifics and then we may come back a little bit more to the general approach.

But the title of your newest book, "Rare Bird," is actually one of the airmen that you profiled, was the source of that?

- That's exactly right, yeah.

That's Cervantes, Colonel Henry Cervantes.

He was a B17 pilot in the 8th Air Force.

And he wrote a book called "Piloto," he was a California boy and raised.

His parents had immigrated.

- And he used those words right, in his book, "Rare Bird?"

- He used rare bird, after he got into the service and he was stationed in Europe, and then he, later on when he was promoted to I think the rank of Captain, he realized that even though he was a rare bird, he was going to be part of the whole system in the Air Force.

- Let's talk about some of those other rare birds closer to home, Val Cordova, who went on after his stint in the service, went on to become a superior court judge and then a federal court judge, very distinguished career.

He's one of the people profiled in your book.

- That's right.

Yeah, he was a B17 pilot.

He was shot down and spent a year and a half in a POW camp in Germany and then he came back.

And through the GI Bill, he got his degree, a master's degree and then went on for a law degree at the University of Arizona.

- Very, very distinguished career.

I want to talk about a few other people real quick before we run out of time.

One of the things you comment on in the book is the number of people you wouldn't have thought were Hispanic but were.

One of them was a famous baseball player, Ted Williams.

- Yes, that's exactly right.

Yeah, his mother was from Texas.

She was a French Mexican ancestry.

And the family moved to Washington, married a man by the name of Williams.

And they moved to San Diego where Ted was born.

And then Ted showed a lot of interest in what it is, her mother, his mother, I'm sorry.

His mother had two brothers that were very good baseball players.

- And as I understand it, he actually interrupted his career to go to the Air Force.

Let me make sure we talk about one other name, at least 'cause this one caught my eye, Brigadier General Robert Cardenas, my same name.

- Exactly.

He was also a B24 pilot in the 8th Air Force and he was also shot down.

He had to bail out, landed in Switzerland and spent his time there.

- And a distinguished career on that note.

I'm sorry, but we're out of time.

Rudy, it's so good to see you again, so good to talk about your wonderful book, "Rare Bird."

Rudy Villarreal, thank you for joining us.

- Okay, you bet.

- And I meant Villarreal, sorry.

- (Ruby laughing) Okay.

- Thank you, good to see you.

- Thank you for having me.

(soft music) - [Narrator] This month in Passport on the PBS Video App, your on demand library for the best of PBS.

- [Woman] Full Hollywood stars are exploring their families extraordinary World War II stories.

- I truly believe that if we make the right decisions, together we can create a better future.

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- And that is it for now.

I'm Ted Simons.

Thank you so much for joining us on this special Memorial Day edition of Arizona Horizon.

You have a great evening.

(gentle music) - [Ted] Coming up in the next half hour of local news on "Arizona PBS" on "Cronkite News," how rural communities have been impacted by the COVID pandemic.

And on "Break It Down," we learn more about Code Talkers, soldiers who helped the US Military by using their native languages.

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