Clovis family has four sons, three generations in military service

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal ^ | Monday, April 11, 2005 | AP

[WestTexasWend]

CLOVIS, N.M. (AP) - Celestino Gonzales rarely sees all four of his sons sitting together for a meal because they're often deployed around the globe, following a strong family tradition of military service that spans three generations.

"We don't need a draft, but we do need to have volunteers," said retired Sgt. Maj. Celestino Gonzales of Clovis. "This is the time to stand up and serve your country. This is the time to lead."

Gonzales, 67, is the father of Lt. Col. Nick Gonzales, Capts. Alex and Daniel Gonzales, and Spc. Victor Gonzales. He proudly describes his sons' exploits and the family history of reporting for duty.

Nick is in Saudi Arabia helping to train their army. Alex is back home after a tour in Iraq and wearing a newly earned Bronze Star for meritorious duty. Daniel, an Army reservist, is stationed in San Antonio after a recent tour in Afghanistan. Victor Gonzales, with the New Mexico Army National Guard, just arrived in Iraq with the 126th Military Police Company and has only had time to send a brief e-mail message to the family.

"He was already on patrols and had come under fire a couple of times but was doing well," the father said.

Just as one brother arrived home safely from Iraq, another is now in the fight.

The family's devotion to the military started in World War II with Roberto "Bob" Gonzales of San Jon. Celestino Gonzales' father served as an infantryman.

"That's all he talked about, was the Army," recalled Celestino Gonzales. "He felt there shouldn't be a draft. He felt that everyone should serve their country, at least one tour."

Celestino Gonzales obeyed his father, enlisting in the Army in 1956 and staying in for three decades. He spent time with the storied 82nd Airborne and, later, as a Special Forces soldier.

"Dad was Army," Celestino Gonzales said of his decision to enlist. "That's reason enough."

For his last seven years in uniform, Celestino Gonzales headed the ROTC program at Eastern New Mexico University. While helping aspiring soldiers earn their commissions there, Gonzales said he "strongly encouraged" his sons to pursue higher education.

"One of the things about it was the money," Celestino said of tuition costs. "So I said, 'There's the ROTC. You'd get an education and commission."

Including Celestino's father, the Gonzaleses have given more than a century's worth of service to Uncle Sam, the family said.

"I think that's unique in itself," Nick, the second oldest, said in a telephone interview from Saudi Arabia. "Four sons supporting operations in the Middle East make it that much more unique."

The youngest, Alex, a 26-year-old soldier at Fort Hood is still getting Iraqi sand and grit out of his gear. A soldier attached to the 1st Cavalry Division, he said his father "didn't push the issue" of joining the Army.

"All of us boys know that it was the right thing to do," said Alex, the only one of the four not yet qualified as an airborne soldier.

While adjusting to life at Fort Hood, Alex keeps his thoughts on hostilities in the Middle East. A career in the Army may send him there again, and, right now, his brother Victor is facing what he just came from in Iraq.

"It's like I was leaving something back in Iraq," said Alex. "I would do anything to be over there right now."

Nick, in Saudi Arabia, helps with logistics for a combined task force of troops from the U.S. Army, Air Force and Navy.

[WestTexasWend]

God bless them all, and keep them safe and strong.

[cardinal4]

What a great story..

[Piquaboy]

An example of a good hard working family from across the border who are doing our country proud. I do doubt that they are recent immigrants, however.

[El Gato]

An example of a good hard working family from across the border who are doing our country proud. I do doubt that they are recent immigrants, however.

Then what makes you think they are from across the border then? The family could very well have been in New Mexico when it was acquired from Mexico after the Mexican War. Conversely, the grandfather could have earned his citizenship through his WW-II service.