A Search for Jorge

The relevance of this letter is arguably disturbing, yet with my right hand on my Bible, I attest to its authenticity. Found among the trove of letters in my mother’s attic, which led me to write 77 Letters, Operation Morale Booster: Vietnam, this note from Jorge H. Hernandez grabbed my heart and pulled on several heartstrings, compelling me to share his thoughts with you.

The first heartstring echoes a somber tune, perhaps in a similar vein to Don McLean’s American Pie, “So, bye-bye, Miss American Pie, brought my Chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry…” This metaphor, of course, reflecting the downfall of his birthplace island of Cuba. What once was as beautiful as a pageant contestant, Cuba was now dry and void of freedom and, thus, void of life.

The second heartstring plays more on the patriotic melody of our National Anthem, “O’er the land of the free, and the home of the brave.” Immediately upon being welcomed to America, Jorge joined the Army to gesture gratitude to the country of hope, prosperity, and the freedom to pursue happiness. I quote his letter below, “I feel it is my duty as a soldier and an American to be fighting for what my country believes… and I believe: for the right of free people to make a better world for all to live.”

What is this freedom? Freedom to live one’s life how they see fit as long as they are not hurting someone else. Freedom to be educated, freedom to earn an income, freedom to speak your mind, and freedom to worship—among other metrics of liberty.

The third heartstring leads me to a call to action. Just days after the birth of Pierre, his youngest child, Jorge was deployed to Vietnam, serving for the 2nd/7th -1st Cavalry Airmobile. He wrote this letter on the April 20, 1966, and my mother mailed a response just six days later. I have reasons to believe he received her letter but did not survive much longer after that.

If this were indeed some of the last thoughts written by a husband/father, it belongs to them—his wife and children—Jeanette, Jorge Jr., and Pierre. By the grace of God and your help, maybe we can circulate this blog and have this search find its way to Jorge’s family. I would love to send his original letter home to his family where it belongs. Please share this entire blog (so they know who to reach out to) on your socials. Miracles like this happen enough to believe it is possible to get this letter home to his family where it belongs.

The Letter from Jorge

An Khe

April/66

Dear Mrs. Hunter,

I am very sorry I couldn’t answer your letter sooner, but we have been swamped going from mission to mission in the field and going through the hardships of an infantry soldier. We are dirty, filthy, and have no water to drink most of the time and are just trying to stay alive one more day. It is dreadful here, but the American people don’t know it, but God knows the truth.

I was born in Havana, Cuba, but came to America to seek freedom from government tyranny. I am a regular soldier, so I volunteered to go to Vietnam. I feel it is my duty as a soldier and an American to be here fighting for what my country believes; that all men are created equal and that all mankind deserves to be free and this freedom is the only way to make the world a better world.

We will stop communism here to prove they won’t take over the world, little by little, as they say, they will do.

Cuba was once a beautiful island, but the communists took it over, and now it is a place where people who were once free, are no longer free. The communist government feels their people are only bodies with no feelings and no rights because they belong to the party-state. This philosophy is why people escape Cuba by the hundreds every day, seeking a place to live free and be happy again.

Additionally, it’s why so many Cubans have come to America, the “land of the FREE” and “home of the BRAVE.” Once they have the opportunity to live again and be happy and work for a new way of life, many of them join in the Army and volunteer for Vietnam to fight and die under the American flag because they are proud to fight for a country that embraces freedom and pursuit of happiness.

I have been in the Army for fourteen years, and I have been to many countries, and there is no place in the world like the GOOD USA, America, the Beautiful… but sadly, Americans don’t realize this.

Please tell the students that we read all their letters at the Cambodia border. Although we had to bury them there, they did boost our morale. It is good to know people care for us in the States, so thank you again.

We lost a few boys at the Cambodia border, and our platoon leader and 2nd Lieutenant got hit pretty bad. We head out again on the 23rd to back to Bong Son, where we lost seventeen men last February. The majority of them were Hispanics from Texas; this is where I am from as well. They are all very young, but none of us complain.

Live or die; we know we are fighting for a good cause; freedom for mankind. If I live through this war, I can go home proud because I fought for my country, America! I have three children: Jeanette (13), Jorge Jr. (8), and Pierre (5 months)—he was only a few days old when I came here.

Well, thank you again for your letters of support. We appreciate them more than you can imagine. Please say hello to your husband.

Sincerely,

Jorge