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On April 9, 1942, sixty years
ago, General King surrendered
the American forces on the
Bataan Peninsula. Many of our
friends died from stabbings,
starvation, and beatings, as we
had been taken Japanese
prisoners-of-war. Many stories
have been written about the
Bataan Death March as well as
the defense of Corregidor. Those
that survived endured even more
torture and were forced to work
in coal and copper mines,
factories, and shipping docks in
remote places throughout the
Philippines and in Japan and
Manchuria.
After three years of hard and
devoted work by the
Bataan-Corregidor Memorial
Foundation of New Mexico, our
dream has finally come true. The
task was not easy. When the
Bataan Veterans Organization,
Albuquerque Chapter, was
notified that the memorial
dedicated to the Bataan veterans
was slated to be removed from
Bataan Memorial Park and placed
at the newly constructed Phil
Chacon Veterans Park, we
mobilized to save and preserve
it.
We worked with a class from the
graduate program in Community
and Regional Planning from the
University of New Mexico and got
a moratorium on any new
construction at the Park. We
used the time to work with the
City Parks and Recreation
Department, the City Mayor and
our local state representatives
to put a stop to the removal.
Our efforts were rewarded when
the park attained the status of
a State Historic Park, the only
such designation ever given to a
city park that is dedicated to
war veterans.
Four years ago, with the help of
many friends, the
Bataan-Corregidor Memorial
Foundation of New Mexico was
formed. Our first president was
Michael Montoya, New Mexico
State Treasurer and son of a
200th Coast Artillery survivor,
Orlando Montoya. Today, Dr.
Adélamar N. Alcántara is
President and has guided us
toward this auspicious day! Her
father, Alejandro Alcántara, was
a Filipino USAFFE survivor of
the Bataan Death March.
I commend and thank all the
people for their efforts.
Special thanks goes to our
Vice-President, Bill Overmier,
200th CA(AA) Battery B,
Treasurer Ernest Montoya, 200th
CA(AA) Battery A, the
Foundation’s Secretary,
Georgianna Peña-Kues, as well as
the rest of the Board.
As I have said many times
before, I want my children, my
grandchildren and my great
grandchildren to come here and
find my name and say, “This was
my dad, my grandfather, my great
grandfather...”
Agapito ‘Gap’ E. Silva, 515th CA(AA) Battery D
Commander, Bataan Veterans Organization
Albuquerque Chapter |
