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spirit of his comrades. Inspired by his gallantry, his men pressed forward to the crest of the hill. Numerous enemy riflemen, refusing to flee, continued firing from their foxholes. S/Sgt. Villegas, with complete disregard for his own safety and the bullets which kicked up the dirt at his feet, charged an enemy position, and, firing at point-blank range killed the
Japanese in a foxhole. He rushed a second foxhole while bullets missed him by inches, and killed 1 more of the enemy. In rapid succession he charged a third, a fourth, a fifth foxhole, each time destroying the enemy within. The fire against him increased in intensity, but he pressed onward to attack a sixth position. As he neared his goal, he was hit and killed by enemy fire. Through his heroism and indomitable fighting spirit, S/Sgt. Villegas, at the cost of his life, inspired his men to a determined attack in which they swept the enemy from the field.
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He was a squad leader when his unit, in a forward position, clashed with an enemy strongly entrenched in connected caves and foxholes on commanding ground. He moved boldly from man to man, in the face of bursting grenades and demolition charges, through heavy machinegun and rifle fire, to bolster the
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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
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hill and then upon his own initiative attacked five enemy foxholes, killing all of their occupants. Villegas was mortally wounded when he attacked the sixth foxhole. His bravery inspired his troupes to take the rest of the hill.
282:, 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
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290:. 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.
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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.
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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
658:"2000 Pay Honor to Sgt. Villegas at Camp Haan". Vol. LX, no. 262. Riverside, California. Riverside Daily Press. November 2, 1945.
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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
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Teters, Beth (17 March 1954). "Hero's
Friends, Neighbors To Beautify Villegas Park". Riverside Daily Press. p. 17.
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resident to receive the Medal of Honor. The city of
Riverside has recognized his heroism in a number of ways.
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In 1952, the city formally named a park located in the Casa Blanca neighborhood Ysmael
Villegas Park.
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573:(VFW) named Post #184 in Riverside the “Ysmael R. Villegas Memorial Casa Blanca Post” in his honor.
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840:"Ysmael Villegas Park Approved". Riverside Independent Enterprise. March 19, 1952. p. 10.
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On March 1, 1945, Villegas' company found itself engaged in combat against
Japanese forces at
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Villegas, nicknamed “Smiley”, married Lillie
Sanchez in 1944, a month before he was sent to
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Among Staff
Sergeant Ysmael R. Villegas' decorations and medals were the following:
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in 1949. His remains were reinterred to become the first veteran buried at the
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Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company F, 127th Infantry, 32d Infantry Division.
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in July 1944. After finishing basic training, he was assigned to Company F,
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in Riverside, California. An estimated 2,000 people attended the ceremony.
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Riverside County, California, Place Names: Their Origins and Their Stories
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312:. Villegas never met their son who was born two weeks after Villegas was
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250:, the United States' highest military decoration, for heroism during
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Ysmael R. Villegas Middle School in Riverside is named in his honor.
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870:. Riverside, CA: Riverside Historical Society. pp. 189–195.
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U.S. National Archives and Records Administration archive listing
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Bretz, Katherine (October 2022). "Family Hero, Local Legend".
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629:, also a World War II Medal of Honor recipient from Riverside
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Villa Verde Trail, Luzon, Philippine Islands, March 20, 1945.
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on Luzon Island in the Philippines, in what is known as the
682:"Green Hornet, Canteen, Foxhole: The Smiley Villegas Story"
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Staff Sergeant Ysmael R. Villegas, Medal of Honor recipient
635:, a Vietnam War Medal of Honor recipient from Riverside
623:, also a 32d Infantry Division Medal of Honor recipient
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which was assigned to the invasion of the Philippines.
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Not to be confused with Major League Baseball player
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United States Army personnel killed in World War II
606:List of Medal of Honor recipients for World War II
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780:"Veterans Day Marks Cemetery's 35th Anniversary"
555:when that cemetery opened on November 11, 1978.
49: and the second or maternal family name is
547:Initially, Villegas was buried at Riverside's
952:World War II recipients of the Medal of Honor
817:"Riverside: Medal of Honor recipient honored"
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27:American Medal of Honor recipient (1924–1945)
962:United States Army non-commissioned officers
947:United States Army Medal of Honor recipients
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764:: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
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393:March 21, 1924 at Casa Blanca, California
238:(March 21, 1924 – March 20, 1945), was a
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787:County of Riverside Veterans' Services
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914:World War II Medal of Honor Recipient
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332:. His squad was attacked by an enemy
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967:American people of Mexican descent
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616:Hispanic Americans in World War II
611:Hispanic Medal of Honor recipients
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982:People from Riverside, California
932:Ysmael R Villegas, Billion Graves
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680:Straight, Susan (24 April 2014).
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851:Ysmael R. Villegas middle school
815:Wall, Stephen (March 24, 2014).
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415:Military Awards and decorations
397:G.O. No.: 89, October 19, 1945.
352:On October 19, 1945, President
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746:. Riverside, CA. p. 559.
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525:Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
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957:Recipients of the Silver Star
901:"VFW CA Post 184 – Riverside"
893:"Riverside National Cemetery"
868:Riverside During World War II
740:Gunther, Jane Davies (1984).
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41:, the first or paternal
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553:Riverside National Cemetery
535:Philippine Liberation Medal
126:Riverside National Cemetery
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908:Russ Dodge (Jun 3, 2000).
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494:Combat Infantryman Badge
286:and his mother was from
141:United States of America
729:Medal of Honor citation
558:Villegas was the first
518:American Campaign Medal
387:Casa Blanca, California
299:127th Infantry Regiment
182:127th Infantry Regiment
99:Casa Blanca, California
718:The 32nd Div. in WW II
684:. KCET. Archived from
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373:Rank and organization:
303:32nd Infantry Division
186:32nd Infantry Division
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280:Riverside, California
236:Ysmael Reyes Villegas
159:Years of service
130:Riverside, California
60:Ysmael Reyes Villegas
822:The Press-Enterprise
293:Villegas joined the
910:"Ysmael R Villegas"
385:Entered service at:
796:on 27 October 2014
549:Olivewood Cemetery
367:Ysmael R. Villegas
310:war in the Pacific
295:United States Army
274:, a predominantly
240:United States Army
153:United States Army
115:Luzon, Philippines
829:on 11 April 2021.
621:David M. Gonzales
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16:(Redirected from
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688:on 10 April 2021
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278:neighborhood of
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234:Staff Sergeant
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921:. Retrieved
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798:. Retrieved
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690:. Retrieved
686:the original
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513:Purple Heart
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320:World War II
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266:Villegas, a
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252:World War II
246:awarded the
244:posthumously
235:
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227:Purple Heart
206:
196:World War II
192:Battles/wars
110:(1945-03-20)
50:
46:
39:Spanish name
992:1945 deaths
987:1924 births
543:In Memoriam
508:Silver Star
338:Silver Star
272:Casa Blanca
223:Silver Star
180:Company F,
78:Nickname(s)
941:Categories
800:27 October
640:References
334:machinegun
262:Background
137:Allegiance
92:1924-03-21
760:cite book
402:Citation:
358:Camp Haan
284:Michoacán
162:1944–1945
752:84-72920
584:See also
276:Hispanic
147:Service/
51:Villegas
37:In this
340:medal.
288:TorreĂłn
254:at the
207:†
43:surname
923:Nov 3,
874:
750:
692:16 May
215:Awards
203:
149:branch
81:Smiley
794:(PDF)
783:(PDF)
391:Born:
47:Reyes
925:2011
872:ISBN
802:2014
766:link
748:LCCN
694:2022
569:The
177:Unit
167:Rank
105:Died
86:Born
45:is
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758:{{
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
