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By Jennie L. Ilustre
Next month, the nation will once again honor its heroes on Memorial Day: the living as well as those who, tragically, never returned.
Jesse Mallares Baltazar, a retired major of the United States Air Force (USAF), will once again wear his crisply starched uniform, with its medals and ribbons from three wars, as he heads for the annual program in Arlington, Virginia.
Autumn would be bursting in a riot of colors. The trees and the flowers around the open air auditorium at the Arlington National Cemetery, near the Tomb of the Unknown Heroes, will be vibrant in red, gold and green. There will be a bit of chill, though. Margrit, the major’s wife, would have a muffler ready, to be sure. Warmth, too, would come from his family’s embrace.
Major Baltazar is 94. Last April, during a medical check-up for a minor complaint for his leg, a result of a war injury, doctors found a liter of water in his lungs. Baltazar and his family were shocked by the news.
The major was happily preparing to attend the annual Bataan Day of Valor ceremony in the Philippines. He had to scrap his plans. More medical examinations followed. Then doctors told him the news. He had Stage 4 lung cancer.
He was incredulous. He asked, “How come it never showed in my previous check-ups all these years?” Also, he never, ever smoked at all.
As is his wont, Baltazar faced this challenge in a calm, realistic manner. He called up experts, including a relative in New York who is a doctor. He googled medical options, looked up scientific terms. He rejected chemotheraphy. He opted for taking medication and radiation. Then looking out at his garden in his home in Falls Church, Virginia, he coolly went back to writing his book, “The Naked Soldier.”
Two Dreams
He would speed up everything, determined to hold a published book in his hands before the year is over. He wanted to tell one soldier’s story. He also wanted to honor brave men and women. As well, he wanted “to salute today’s men and women in harm’s way, engaging in far more perilous combat conditions than in the conventional wars.”
He started the book as a memoir, five years ago. It is now part history, part memoir. It includes his war experiences, his family travels and his tours of duty in the USAF and the State Department. In all, he has visited 84 countries. The longest serving State Department employee, he still reports for part time work, as Construction Security Technician.
His other dream is to receive the Purple Heart medal from President Barack Obama at a White House ceremony. Last year, he received news that he merited the Purple Heart medal for his injury in World War II. “This is after waiting for 60-plus years,” he said, smiling wryly but elated at the news.
Officials at the State Department are helping him achieve this goal, looking for a window in the President’s schedule. Alas, President Obama’s schedule this year is super-hectic. Still, Baltazar continues to hope. He writes follow-up emails. His family and his friends are making phone calls. Having fought in WWII, this soldier knows about persevering against all odds.
Baltazar served in three wars: WWII, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. For his gallantry during the Second World War, he was also awarded the Bronze Star. He also received awards in the other conflicts.
Lucky Soldier
Baltazar was a staff sergeant in the 71st Battalion of the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) under General Douglas MacArthur. Shrapnels tore at his left leg during a bombing air raid by the Japanese. Later, he was captured. He walked the Bataan Death March. Luckily, he escaped with the help of two villagers. But the brutality he experienced and witnessed has scarred him.
Baltazar stressed: “The lesson of any war is clear: The world can forgive, and should. But it should never, ever forget injustice–or history, at a terrible cost to human lives and the ideals of democracy–will repeat itself.”
After the war, Baltazar came to the US. In 1948, he became the first American of Filipino ancestry to be commissioned as second lieutenant in the US Air Force. He served for twenty years, assigned primarily overseas with the Office of Special Investigations (OSI).
In 1950-51, as a special agent for OSI in Korea, his fluency in five languages came handy. As a Russian interrogator in Korea and Berlin, Germany, he interviewed refugees and defectors. He joined the State Department in 1966, starting in Vietnam as Deputy Provincial Advisor.
The book would demonstrate Baltazar’s fighting spirit. Against all odds, he triumphed over the vicissitudes of three wars. He endured the death of two younger brothers who were in the resistance movement.
Baltazar was born in Manila, Philippines. His military career began when the Japanese attacked the Philippines on December 8, 1941, hours after they bombed Pearl Harbor. He left his class that day. He crossed the street and proceeded to enlist in the US Army.
Two of his sons continued the family tradition of service. They are retired US Army Col. Thomas Baltazar and Senior Lt. Melchior Baltazar of the elite US Navy Seals.
“I will always be a loyal citizen who dearly loves my country of birth, as well as America, a beacon of democracy and the greatest country in the world,” Baltazar said. He considers himself lucky. “Every soldier feels it is an honor and a privilege to serve,” he noted. He served in three wars, gallantly and with honor.
