PFC José F. Valdez

PFC José F. Valdez was born in the farming village of Governador in Northern New Mexico Rio Arriba County. He was the son of José Venceslas Valdez and Julianita Valdez of Ensenada New Mexico. PFC Valdez was  a “World War II Medal of Honor Recipient. He received the award posthumously on February 8, 1946 for his actions as a private first class with Company B, 7th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division, US Army on January 25, 1945, near Rosenkranz, France, at the Colmar Pocket operation during the Western Allied invasion of France. He joined the US Army in June 1944 and after completing basic training, he was assigned to the 3rd Infantry Division and sent to France. He was seriously wounded during his unit’s encounter with enemy forces on January 25, 1945 while repelling an attack. PFC Valdez while wounded called for fire and with his weapon protected his withdrawing element saving lives. He died as a result of would sustained three weeks later at the age of 20.

Please note, this biography is incomplete. If you are a relative or close friend of this veteran, we encourage you to contact us at vlgp@sfcc.edu to complete this biography with your story and documentation (if available). 

Bio organized by E. Garcia

Notes:

See https://army.togetherweserved.com/army/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=LegacySBV&type=Person&ID=26575

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/9785/jose-f.-valdez

https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/JOSEFVALDEZ/A8BFD93

[1] Quoted Bio paragraph by: William Bjornstad accessed on 6/15/2023 at https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/9785/jose-f.-valdez