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Abel Hernandez was born on November 11, 1924, in West Sacramento (formerly Broderick), CA. Abel's mother, Natividad, died when he was just four years old. He was the oldest of her three children, all raised by their grandparents, Katarina and Roque, who had seven children. Thus, all the children were raised together as brothers and sisters. Abel's father, Bonifacio, worked hard and saved money to buy property and a small house for his three children, providing a home for his in-laws and their seven children. Life as a child was good: “We were poor, but we had everything we needed and were together.” Abel attended West Acre School and, at 14, began working full-time, picking fruit and sometimes having to sleep under the stars to help support his family. At 16, he secured a job as a mail handler at the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP).
Abel turned 18 in 1942. Shortly thereafter, he was drafted. He quit his SP job, not realizing he could take military leave. He completed Army basic training at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri in the 75th Division. He was then deployed to the Pacific Campaign through Thanksgiving Day in 1945. He set off first to New Caledonia, then Guadalcanal, followed by Bougainville as a replacement patrol. After that, he was sent to the Philippines, landing on a beach that was under heavy fire from the air, battleships, and ground troops. He said there were about 60 to 100 ships; he “never saw so many.” It was there that he became part of the 37th Infantry Division.
The 37th Division and other U.S. and allied forces fought in the Battle of Manila from February 3rd to March 3rd, 1945. Abel recalled that the Japanese shelled their company with cannons, resulting in many casualties. “They shelled the heck out of us; about 60 guys got killed in that battle.” This battle was the cornerstone of General MacArthur's effort to liberate the Philippines from the Japanese. Following the battle, the captain promoted Abel to Buck Sergeant, and he was elevated to Staff Sergeant in the 145th Infantry a month later. Abel also saw several relatives and friends from West Sacramento while fighting overseas: Uncle Phil Reynoso, who was with a tank destroyer unit; Pete Pina, Quartermaster Roy Vialobos, Gabriel Cano, Robert Alcanter, and a cousin, Jesse Martinez, who fought with the 1st Cavalry.
At night, the men would pair up to keep watch while the others slept. Abel was paired up with Bill Logan from Kentucky. After being informed that they would be sleeping in a foxhole together, Bill exclaimed, “No way! I never slept by a man that dark.” Eventually, they became friends. Later, Bill told Abel he preferred to go out on patrol with him because he knew he had his back. Sadly, Bill was killed while out on patrol. Abel did not go out with him that day. Abel said the best part of the war was "when we were fighting, we got free beer. When there was no fighting, we had to pay!" Abel also had the chance to see Bob Hope and “a lot of movie stars. They’d dance and sing for us.”
When the Japanese surrendered, their soldiers came down from the mountains. It was then that Abel's company realized the Japanese outnumbered them, as they had only about 70 soldiers left. A Japanese officer informed Abel's captain that they would all be dead if not for their unconditional surrender. Abel's last mission involved moving these prisoners of war (POWs) into semi-trucks. Astonishingly, there were 10 semi-trucks loaded with Japanese POWs. By the war's end, Abel had become a Staff Sergeant and Machine Gunner. He fought bravely in the Pacific Campaign until the end of World War II. He was awarded the Combat Infantry Badge, World War II Victory Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, and the Bronze Star.
