This article was written by San Benito High School student reporter Jordan Ramos and is part of the Veterans Voices Project.
Anthony Gutierrez of Hollister felt obligated to sign with the military and put his life on the line for his country. It can all be traced to his great-grandfather who served and fought in the Mexican Revolution. Gutierrez explained, “My great-grandfather was a soldier, my grandfather was a soldier, my father was a soldier, and I was a soldier.” He realized that it was his “duty at the time” and that it was “best for his country at the time.” With this mindset, he decided to act with urgency to enlist in U.S. Army rather waiting to be drafted for the Vietnam War.
Anthony Gutierrez was born in Watsonville, but as a child he moved around a lot with his mother. “My mom moved around quite a bit,” said Gutierrez.
He was never able to fully settle in one area or another. Mother and son were always on the move. Growing up without a father also complicated Gutierrez’s life. His father served and died during World War Two.
“My father passed away when I was four months old,” Gutierrez said, adding. “My mom was both mother and father to me, it wasn’t really that hard.”
In high school, Gutierrez participated heavily in sports. It became a part of his lifestyle. Although, reality had settled in when it came to the award ceremonies and team banquets. He said, “I felt cheated…, I’d see everybody with their parents, and with their fathers, and I didn’t have one.”
Gutierrez was shipped off to Vietnam near the beginning of the war.
“The war was very hard,” said Gutierrez, “the platoon that I was sent with, there was 53 of us… only 3 of us made it out,” he stated, “I’m one of the lucky ones. You appreciate life more.”
He was always placed out on patrols and this is where his nerves started to peak.
“I would be eating and I’d look at everybody, and sometimes people that were there before, weren’t there no more,” he said.
These were the times where he genuinely felt nervous and scared. When it came to being in action, he believed that he was too busy thinking about what he had to do to be afraid or scared. “You just did what you were trained to do,” he said.
It was only in aftermath–when one was with his squad or platoon–that the mind started to be aware of the fear. This is when soldiers’ mental states started to deteriorate and become decayed. These thoughts of who was dead, and who was to be next.
“God was with me quite a bit,” Gutierrez said.
During one patrol he mentioned that it was his turn to watch the rear of the patrol. He was told by a sergeant, “ ‘Gutierrez, I’ll take your turn tonight, you’ll take my turn tomorrow.’ ”
Gutierrez told the sergeant, “Nah, nah, nah, I’m good.”
“No, it’s fine, you’re here playing cards and having a good time,” the sergeant insisted.
“So the patrol went out, and it was dark, and we heard a big blast,” Gutierrez said, “We wondered what happened. The patrol followed the same trail, and he was the last one… he stepped on a landmine.” The blast took the sergeant’s leg off, and Gutierrez found out later, that he didn’t make it.
Gutierrez solemnly said, “I should’ve been there, not him, but he took my place.”
This was just one of the experiences that Gutierrez had to withstand. Even experiences away from combat became impactful.
When he was shipped back to the states, Gutierrez was placed on burial detail, where he had to take bodies that were shipped from the war to different places where they were to be buried.
He said, “It was a hard experience. You would see the suffering that parents, spouses, and children had to go through.”
Despite all the traumatic events that Gutierrez experienced, he still places his service in the army with pride and honor, explaining that he was shown a brand new perspective and he constructed his life-code.
“I live to love God, family, and country,” he said.
With his experience of not having a father, he made sure that he would be there for every step of his children’s lives.
With God watching over him and protecting him, he wanted to make sure he was able to thank Him.
With his service in the Army, he wanted to make sure he was patriotic.
Gutierrez’s story and code defines his character, while underscoring what it means be a veteran.
[Note: This student reporter, Jordan Ramos, is a senior at SBHS, and currently plans to attend college at University of California, Los Angeles.]
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