Evelio Alfred Gomez
Private First Class
K CO, 75TH INFANTRY, 4TH INF DIV, USARV
Army of the United States
Kalamazoo, Michigan
October 25, 1947 to August 19, 1970
EVELIO A GOMEZ is on the Wall at Panel W8, Line 124
See the full profile or name rubbing for Evelio Gomez
Richard Beam Roger Crunk Angel Fatten Al Gomez
MILITARY DATA
Service: Army (Selective Sevice)
Grade at loss: E3
Rank: Private First Class
ID No: 384481741
MOS: 11B10: Infantryman 11F4P
Len Svc: 1 year
Unit: Company K (Ranger), 75th Infantry
CASUALTY DATA
Start Tour: 07/06/1970
Cas Date: 08/19/1970
Age at Loss: 22
Remains: Body recovered
Location: Binh Dinh, South Vietnam
Type: Hostile, died outright, ground casualty
Reason: Gun, small arms fire
AWARDS
Purple Heart, Combat Infantryman Badge, Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam
Campaign Medal
GRAVESITE
Mount Olivet Cemetery, Eastwood, Michigan
Link to Remembrances:
https://www.vvmf.org/Wall-of-Faces/19027/EVELIO-A-GOMEZ
https://www.thewall-usa.com/guest.asp?recid=19038
Evelio, born in Havana, Cuba, was the son of Evelio T. and Sylvia G. Gomez. He had been a resident of Kalamazoo, MI, for eight years. He was a member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. Gomez was a graduate of Kalamazoo Central High School and a junior at Western Michigan University before enlisting in the U.S. Army. He was a member of Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity. Evelio Gomez also served as a carrier for The Gazette in his youth.
* * *
Joe Gomez
jgomez@smgqlaw.com
Cousin
Evelio Gomez was my second cousin (Evelio’s father and my grandfather were brothers). We never met, however, as Evelio died when I was only 8 years old. His family settled in Michigan upon leaving the tyranny of Castro’s revolution while my family fled to Miami. My mother reminded me recently that I had a cousin who died in Vietnam and I decided to see what information I could find about him on the internet. I was very thankful to find a lot of information. I was particularly thankful for all the comments and posts made by caring and patriotic Americans. I am very proud of Evelio’s service and proud to be an American. But not for this great country allowing Cubans to enter after fleeing the scourge of communism, my family and I would be still be suffering under the dirty boot of communism rather than prospering here as a result of the tremendous freedoms and opportunities that were given to us. American is the greatest country in the world and we must fight for our freedoms. Thanks to all who served in Vietnam, and to all those who fought and died in American wars. I also wish to say that I had the privilege of taking my 9 year old son to the Vietnam Memorial recently and we found Evelio’s name on the Wall. It was an emotional moment that I will never forget. I also wish to thank specifically Roger Crunk, Evelio’s K Company commander for the 75th infantry division who was there when Evelio died, and James Bell for keeping his memory alive by placing a memorial in his back yard, as well as David Bristol for all his posts. You are all true American heroes and will never be forgotten. May God bless you all.
Apr 12, 2014
David Bristol
dlbristol@msn.com
Served in same Company
15397 Red Mtn Lane, Collbran, Co., 81624
To a fellow Ranger:
I never knew, PFC Gomez, but I knew well, the men who were, with him, when he died. Pfc Gomez, was killed, on a Long, Range, Recon Patrol, (LRRP) mission. He was on the team of Sgt Roger Crunk. Sgt Crunk and one other member of the 4 man team were badly wounded in the contact. While I never met Pfc Gomez, I do know the kind of men who volunteered for this kind of mission. I know the courage it took to go out in tiny 4 man teams. I know the physical demands of the loads that we carried. I know the mental and emotional exhaustion of 4 and 5 day missions. Roger is now my brother-in-law and I have seen the price he has paid, physically and emotionally. After 30, years, he still grieves for the loss of a team member. The men of K Co have placed a brick in Pfc Gomez’s honor at the Ranger Memorial in Ft. Benning, Ga. We have done this for all of the men who died in our unit. We would like to find the parents and family of this young Ranger and honor his Mother and Father. We may not have known each other but we were in a very real way, brothers. We are all part of a very special unit and we honor those who gave all in the line of duty. Please know that we honor you and your Family.
Tuesday, October 29, 2002
David Bristol
djbristol@msn.com
Served in same company
Since I last wrote on this page, I located Evelio’s Mom. She was not interested in visiting with me, but she was gracious enough to share that she held no ill will toward the men who were with her son when he was killed. I have also learned that this family was from Cuba. They came to the US at the time of the Bay of Pigs incident. What an ironic end to the promise of freedom! But, it has always been so, and always will be, I suspect. Freedom is always purchased by those who risk losing everything.
Friday, December 02, 2005
Remembering Our Cousin
Posted on 4/12/14
This follows my brother, John Gomez’s, post on 2/22/14. Evelio Gomez was our second cousin (Evelio’s father and our grandfather were brothers). We never met Evelio, however, as Evelio died when I was only 8 years old. His family settled in Michigan upon leaving the tyranny of Castro’s revolution while my family fled to Miami. My mother reminded us recently that we had a cousin who died in Vietnam and I decided to see what information I could find about him on the internet. I was very thankful to find a lot of information. I was particularly thankful for all the comments and posts made by caring and patriotic Americans. We are very proud of Evelio’s service and proud to be Americans. But not for this great country allowing Cubans to enter after fleeing the scourge of communism, my family and I would be still be suffering under the dirty boot of communism rather than prospering here as a result of the tremendous freedoms and opportunities that were given to us. America is the greatest country in the world . Thanks to all who served in Vietnam, and to all those who fought and died in American wars. I also wish to say that I had the privilege of taking my 10 year old son to the Vietnam Memorial recently and we found Evelio’s name on the Wall. It was an emotional moment that I will never forget as long as I live. I also wish to thank especially Roger Crunk, Evelio’s K Company commander for the 75th infantry division who was there when Evelio died and James Bell for keeping his memory alive by placing a memorial in his back yard. Like our cousin, you are all true American heroes and will never be forgotten. May God bless you all.