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One Man's Odyssey - Private Cisilio R. Gonzales

July 13 to July 23, 1944 - In Transit To The ETO

.Currently available records do not indicate what troop ship Cisilio Gonzales traveled on but the ten-day travel span certainly indicates that was the method of transportation he employed.  Whether he was sent to England because he had already volunteered to be a parachutist or if he volunteered after arriving is also not known.  But, the extra $50 a month was probably a strong incentive for this young man who had married just nine months earlier

Cisilio
Gonzales
    Rosa Juanita
Gonzales
October 5, 1944
APO # 469 (England)
October 8, 1944
APO # 230 (England)


Jump School Graduation
was signed by Brigadier General Jams M. Gavin.  Just three months after arriving in England, Cisilio was now a paratrooper.

Having successfully completed the course, Cisilio was apparently transferred to the 508th's Service Company (see letter at right)


V-Mail Front Acted
As An Envelope

To: Mrs. Jesusa Gutieres
Lubbock, Texas

From: Pfc. Cisilio R. Gonzales
Service Co. 508 th Parachute Inf.
APO 230 c/o Post Master N.Y., N. Y.

10-8-1944


Back of Sheet
Held Message

My Sister,
   It is with all my pleasure that I take pencil in hand with the purpose of saying hello to you and hoping that you are in good health and in good company with your husband and I'm in good health thanks to God.
   I haven't much to say regarding myself, except for you not writing me, its been about two months since I received a letter from you. write soon. I can hardly wait to hear from you, and tell me how is mom and the girls and Jose (Jose was a nickname for his sister Josefina). It's been sometime since I received a letter, I don't have the address to either of you.
   Well, Jesusa lets talk about whats happing in Lubbock, tell me if Juanita (my wife) has written or not. When I write mom, please give me the address to Mencha Bustillos, if he comes to Lubbock, have him write me. Well, thats pretty much all I have.

From your brother who loves you very much.

Cisilio Gonzales

(V-mail and translations kindly provided by John Gonzales, Cicilio's son.)

NOTE: Although Cisilio wrote this V-Mail letter on October 8th, it did not receive a censor's stamp of approval until October 26th.  That delay may have been longer than normal due to it having been written in Spanish but all mail was somewhat delayed until the officers appointed to be censors could find time to read each letter sent by some 2,000 men.  Letters would then be forwarded to the designated recipient although some text may have been snipped out, i.e., censored.

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