reporter/ managing editor
The daughters of Master Sergeant Raul P. “Roy” Benavidez traveled from Houston on August 5th to celebrate what would have been their father’s 90th birthday. .
Approximately 75 De-Witt County residents gathered at the statue of Benavidez across from Cuero High School to pay tribute to the legendary Medal of Honor winner, who was born in Lindenau 90 years ago.
After both his mother and father died of tu- berculosis when he was young, his grandparents in El Campo raised him and his brother, according to Wikipedia. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the Texas Army National Guard. Three years later, he switched from the Army National Guard to Army active duty, joining the 82nd Airborne Division and completing special forces training.
After retiring from the Army in 1976, Benavidez spoke to young people across the U.S. about the importance of education. He passed away in 1998.
Cuero Mayor Emil Garza, an Air Force veteran, said Benavidez is revered among Vietnam veterans.
“Audie Murphy was the badass of WWII, but Roy Benavidez is the badass of Vietnam,” he said after the event.
Garza said that not many people know that Benavidez was injured in Vietnam three years before the “six hours in hell” battle for which he received the Medal of Honor.
According to Wikipedia, Benavidez was injured by a land mine on a solo mission in 1965. Doctors said he would not walk again and discharge papers were prepared.
But he took exception to the diagnosis as well as the flag burnings and criticism of the U.S. presence in Vietnam. He began an unsanctioned training ritual each night, forcing himself to redevelop his ability to walk. In the summer of 1966 he walked out of the hospital determined to return to Vietnam, which he did in 1968.
Mayor Garza said people also don’t know that Benavidez was not with the patrol under attack in May of 1968. “He was safe, and he volunteered to get on a helicopter and go help his brothers,” he said.
A 12-man special forces patrol was surrounded near Loc Ninh, South Vietnam, by 1,000 North Vietnamese infantry. Benavidez heard the radio call for help and got on the rescue helicopter with only a knife and his medical bag.
Throughout the battle he was able to save the lives of at least eight men while receiving 37 wounds from bullets, shrapnel and a bayonet. After he was evacuated, a doctor declared him dead, but as the body bag was about to be closed Benavidez did the only thing he could to show he was alive - he spit.
As President Ronald Reagan said in the medal ceremony, 'If the story of his heroism were a movie script, you would not believe it.'
Benavidez wrote three books about his life, but according to his daughters Denise Benavidez Prochaxka and Evette Benavidez Garcia, he remained humble and focused on service.
Soon after Benavidez death in 1998, community volunteers in DeWitt County started the Benavidez Memorial Foundation. By 2004 they had raised the $50,000 for the statue that was installed across from Cuero High School.
Mayor Garza said he didn’t see any young people at the August 5th ceremony and his message at the event stressed the importance of honoring the sacrifices of the U.S. military and educating young people about the stories of military service.
The family of MSG Benavidez are asking for help in identifying the semi-marked graves, or unmarked sites, of their relatives in DeWitt County: Salvador Benavidez (Roy’s father) buried at the Hamilton Ranch, 11/7/38, with the funeral reportedly handled by Freund Funeral Home.; Teresa Perez (Roy’s mother) buried at the Joe Bain Ranch or possibly Hamilton Ranch, burial date unknown; Bellatres Chavez (sister of Roy) buried at Hillside Cemetery in/near Cuero: passed away at six months old, the exact location unknown.
Any information regarding the location of the cemetery /graves, including Hillside Cemetery, Hamilton Ranch or Joe Bain Ranch, please contact Yvette Benavidez Garcia at Yvettebgarcia@ gmail.com.
