Book excerpt: Virgil Fernandez was born in Port La Vaca, Texas in 1951. He and his family then moved to San Antonio when he was in high school. After graduating from Thomas Jefferson High School in 1969, he joined the U.S. Navy and served aboard the aircraft carrier, USS Saratoga until 1971. He then enrolled in San Antonio College and received an associate's degree in Radio Broadcasting in 1973. Virgil then transferred to the University of Texas at Austin and earned a bachelor's degree in government in 1975. Following college, Virgil worked as a news reporter and photographer/editor for radio and TV stations in Austin, San Antonio, Corpus Christi, and Dallas. In 1985 he decided to return to San Antonio and in 1987 began working for the Texas Employment Commission as an Interviewer. Being a disabled veteran himself, he was selected to be a Disabled Veteran's Outreach counselor. Virgil specialized in job placement and also taught job search workshops for three years. Virgil's interest in veteran's issues remained after leaving the Commission in 1996, and he published his first book, The Complete Veterans' Benefits Manual, in 2000. He then returned to the University of Texas and completed a Bachelor of Science Degree in Public Relations in 2001. Virgil then went to work for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality as an Information Specialist, specializing in media relations and web and text publishing. However, his interest in Hispanic issues, history, and veterans remained throughout the years. He finally decided to combine them and began researching articles relating to Hispanics and the roles they have played in the U.S. military. Several years later, the result was this book, Hispanic Military Heroes. Book jacket.