Staff Sergeant Ysmael Reyes Villegas (March 21, 1924 – March 20, 1945), was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

soldier who was

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' (E ...

awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

, the United States' highest military decoration, for heroism during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

at the Battle of Luzon.

Background

Villegas, a

Mexican-American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...

, was born and raised in Casa Blanca, a predominantly

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

neighborhood of

Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...

, where he received his primary and secondary education. Villegas was the oldest of 13 children born to Dario and Inez (Reyes) Villegas. Both of his parents were native to Mexico, his father from

Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo (; Purépecha: ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of ...

and his mother was from

Torreón Torreón () is a city and seat of Torreón Municipality in the Mexican state of Coahuila. As of 2021, the city's population was 735,340. The metropolitan population as of 2015 was 1,497,734, making it the ninth-biggest metropolitan area in the ...

. His official commendation states that Villegas was an “orange picker” prior to his enlistment. At the time, orange production was a major industry in the Riverside area. Villegas joined the

in July 1944. After he finished his basic training, he was assigned to Company F, 127th Infantry Regiment, 32nd Infantry Division which was assigned to the invasion of the Philippines. Villegas, nicknamed “Smiley”, married Lillie Sanchez in 1944, a month before he was sent to

war in the Pacific The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the Theater (warfare), theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, ...

. Villegas never met their son who was born two weeks after Villegas was killed in action.

World War II

On March 1, 1945, Villegas' company found itself engaged in combat against Japanese forces at

Villa Verde Trail A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became sm ...

on Luzon Island in the Philippines, in what is known as the Battle of Luzon. His squad was attacked by an enemy machinegun nest, and Villegas took it upon himself to save his squad by destroying the nest and its occupants. For his actions, Villegas was awarded the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

medal. On March 20, 1945, the day before his 21st birthday, Villegas was ordered to lead his squad in an advance which would result in the taking of a hill. They confronted an enemy which was entrenched and who attacked them with heavy machinegun and rifle fire. Villegas led his men toward the crest of the hill and then upon his own initiative attacked five enemy foxholes, killing all of their occupants. He was mortally wounded when he attacked the sixth foxhole. His bravery inspired his troupes to take the rest of the hill.

Medal of Honor

On October 19, 1945, President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor to Villegas. The medal was presented to his widow by Col. G. B. Appleman on November 1, 1945, at

Camp Haan Camp Haan was a US Army training camp built in 1940, near March Air Force Base in Riverside County, California Camp Haan was opened in January 1941 as a training camp for Coast Artillery Antiaircraft gunners. The 8,058 acres camp was about four m ...

in Riverside, California. An estimated 2,000 people attended the ceremony.

Military Awards and decorations

Among Staff Sergeant Ysmael R. Villegas' decorations and medals were the following:

In Memoriam

Initially, Villegas was buried at Riverside's Olivewood Cemetery in 1949. His remains were reinterred to become the first veteran buried at the Riverside National Cemetery when that cemetery opened on November 11, 1978. Villegas was the first Riverside County resident to receive the Medal of Honor. The city of Riverside has recognized his heroism in a number of ways. * In 1952, the city formally named a park located in the Casa Blanca neighborhood Ysmael Villegas Park. * The

Veterans of Foreign Wars The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), formally the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, is an organization of US war veterans, who, as military service members fought in wars, campaigns, and expeditions on foreign land, waters, or a ...

(VFW) named Post #184 in Riverside the “Ysmael R. Villegas Memorial Casa Blanca Post” in his honor. * A statue by sculptor Gary E. Coulter, called Villegas Memorial, was dedicated on May 27, 1995, and is located on Main Street Civic Center Courtyard in Riverside. * Ysmael R. Villegas Middle School in Riverside is named in his honor.Ysmael R. Villegas middle school
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References

External links

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Ysmael R Villegas, Billion Graves
{{DEFAULTSORT:Villegas, Ysmael R. United States Army Medal of Honor recipients World War II recipients of the Medal of Honor Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army non-commissioned officers American people of Mexican descent United States Army personnel killed in World War II Burials at Riverside National Cemetery People from Riverside, California 1924 births 1945 deaths