43
Hispanic veterans honored at 11th annual OCCHA dinner
By Sean Barron
YOUNGSTOWN
The longer Fred Elbert spent recalling his more than four years in captivity decades ago, the harder it was to keep the tears at bay.
“You can only live day to day and wonder if it’ll ever end,” the Canton man said, referring to his time as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War.
Elbert, who served in the Marines, gave an emotional presentation as the keynote speaker for the Organizacion Civica y Cultural Hispana Americana’s 11th annual Hispanic Veteran’s Appreciation dinner Saturday at OCCHA, 3660 Shirley Road, on the South Side.
The gathering was to honor living and deceased veterans of all military branches who served their country. Also remembered were POWs as well as those missing in action.
Elbert told of having gone to Vietnam on Jan. 12, 1968, only to be captured about seven months later, along with several fellow comrades.
During his captivity, he tried three times to escape but was recaptured each time within hours. On the last two occasions, his captors beat him up, and after the third attempt at freedom, Elbert wound up in solitary confinement for roughly seven months, he told his audience of about 150 fellow veterans and others.
During his time as a POW, Elbert also suffered torture and hunger “like I’ve never experienced,” he said. Perhaps more agonizing for Elbert, however, was the knowledge that some of those he served with had died of diseases or at the hands of their captors while others were unable to cope with their situations, he explained.
“I have wondered as the years pass if they have been forgotten or if they ever made it home,” he said of other comrades.
For most of those who did make it home, their lives were forever changed, so it’s important for them to be able to tell their stories and be honored, Elbert continued.
“The war is not over for many of us,” he added.
Soldiers such as Elbert have made tremendous sacrifices in the name of preserving others’ freedoms and rights. Nevertheless, too often people take their freedoms for granted, said Hector Colon, OCCHA’s chairman and the dinner’s master of ceremonies.
Colon also read aloud the names of veterans in attendance as well as the 61 Mahoning Valley Hispanic veterans who are deceased. Also remembered was Porfirio Gonzalez, who served in the Korean War and is considered missing in action.
In addition, the gathering had a Table of Remembrance that held a white tablecloth, an inverted wine glass, a chair for one, a red rose in a vase, a container of salt and a lemon slice, all of which were rich in symbolism.
The tablecloth was symbolic of soldiers’ purity of intentions in responding to serve their nation; the upside-down glass represented the missing soldier’s inability to make a toast; and the rose stood for family members and loved ones keeping their faith that the soldier will return. In addition, the salt and slice of lemon represented family members’ tears and the soldiers’ bitter fate, respectively.