Memorial Day Reflections: Sgt. Major Homer Garza

A veteran of the Korean War looks back on his time in the U.S. Army.

By Andy Uhler & Rachel PhuaMay 19, 2015 8:07 am

The Texas Standard collected the memories of veterans across the state for Memorial Day 2015.

Homer Garza was born in Beeville and raised in Petronila, outside of Corpus Christi. He joined the Texas National Guard when he was 15.

“I arrived in Japan and the North Koreans invaded South Korea,” he says. “I went to war right away.”

Garza says he was raised on a farm – picking cotton, using outhouses. “I joined the Army so I could have hot and cold running water and have a place to eat and not have to worry,” he says.

He left Camp Hood in 1950 and thought he’d stay in Japan for three years. But after two weeks, he was sent to Korea. They landed with a boat, like in Normandy.

“We were facing an army that had 5 or 6,000 soldiers,” he says. “The odds at that time was 21 of them to one of us.”

Send us your Memorial Day memories on Twitter (@texasstandard) or via email (texasstandard@kut.org).