Courtesy photos Jess Victoria, left, is shown with friend and Army comrade Joe Moore. Moore was killed in combat in New Guinea.

Joe Victoria, the first of four brothers to enter the war, was held captive by Japan for nearly four years.

Jess Victoria of Santa Paula served as a medic with the 33rd Infantry Division in New Guinea and the Philippines. Courtesy Photo

Housed in his small shoe repair shop in Santa Paula is a sign Jess Victoria made that reads "You are now at Ground Zero!"

New York City it is not, but the meaning of those words means more to Victoria than remembering that horrific day in September 2001. They represent the effects he said wars have on every community across the country.

"Do you see that sign over there?" he asked as he pointed to the letter-size paper he hung behind the front counter of his shop. "I made that sign to remind me and others that wars of all kind take their toll on every community in this country, and that we have to stay united and strong through the worst of times."

That same sentiment, he said, rang true for his family as he and three of his brothers left Santa Paula and headed to World War II.

"Our leaving really affected my mother in a huge way because she never knew if we were safe," Victoria said. "My sister was still a baby at the time, and she became my mother's salvation. Raising her distracted my mother from her sadness. She knew she had to be strong for my sister, if for nothing else."

For Manuel and Concepcion Victoria, seeing their four sons off to war was perhaps their toughest task.

"I know they were proud of us, but scared at the same time," Victoria said.

Joe, the second eldest, enlisted in the Army Air Force in 1940 and was captured by the Japanese before Pearl Harbor was bombed.

"We never heard from him and never knew if he was alive," Victoria said. "All we could do was pray that he was."

Manuel, the eldest, enlisted in the Army and served as a shoe repairman for the 5th Army in Europe.

Rudy, the third of the four sons, enlisted in the Coast Guard and spent much of his time in the service on foot patrol near San Diego. It was an assignment Victoria said was a blessing because his mother always knew where one of her sons was.

Jess, the youngest son, was the last to leave. He was drafted into the Army on Feb. 9, 1943. He left his home in Santa Paula and went to the bus station in downtown Santa Paula.

After his official induction, Victoria was sent to Camp Roberts for basic training.

"When we finished our training, my unit left for the war but kept nine soldiers stateside for reassignment to a language translation outfit," Victoria said. "I was one of the nine."

The nine left behind were scheduled to leave for the University of Michigan to start their training as part of a specialized translation unit. But for Victoria, the assignment was never to be.

"I received new orders to report to Camp Stoneman in Pittsburg, Calif., for a new assignment," he said.

Medic was his assignment

That new assignment was as a medic attached to the 33rd Infantry Division.

By early July 1943, Victoria was on his way to Kauai, Hawaii, for medic training at the Army hospital on the island. He spent 10 months working as an orderly in the operating room before receiving word that he was going to war.

On May 7, 1944, Victoria boarded a converted luxury liner bound for New Guinea and the war in the Pacific.

Once he arrived, he joined the rest of the 33rd Division in combat training. By Christmas of that year, Victoria and the other members of the 33rd were on their way to combat in northern New Guinea.

"We were there Christmas night, and I remember eating dinner in the mess hall," Victoria said. "I sang White Christmas' to the guys. It was a comfort thing for us because it was no fun being away from our families on the holidays."

The jungle conditions throughout New Guinea left much to be desired, Victoria said.

"The humidity and thick jungle brush made it hard sometimes," he said.

It was in New Guinea that Victoria's friend Joe Moore was killed in combat.

"You never forget those moments," he said. "Losing your comrades is the worst part."

By early February 1945, Victoria was en route to Luzon's Lingayen Gulf in the Philippine Islands. He spent six months in combat on the island before the Japanese surrendered in August 1945. On Sept. 16, Victoria received his final assignment and left to serve on guard duty in northern Japan.

We are seven'

The Victoria family waited nearly four years to hear if Joe was OK. In 1944, Charley Ante, a fellow Santa Paulan and prisoner of war, was able to contact his sister to tell her he was OK and that he was with Joe. Nearly a year later, both men were released from the prison camp. Joe weighed only 90 pounds.

"It was his humor that got him through it," Victoria said. "How else can you endure that many years of deprivation?"

In December 1945, Victoria returned to the United States and was discharged from the Army. He left the service with two battle stars, and a Bronze Star for retrieving his wounded platoon leader in Luzon. When he got back to Santa Paula, he was greeted by Joe and Manuel, who had returned months before. Rudy was the last to be discharged. He returned to Santa Paula in 1946.

"I was glad to see Joe," Victoria said. "I was glad we all made it home, but knowing that Joe was OK brought a sort of peace."

Joe passed away earlier this year, and Rudy followed in May. Manuel, who resides in Fillmore, and Jess, now 84, along with their sister, Yolanda, are left to preserve the memory of the "Victoria Four."

"Rudy always liked to say that no matter what, we were seven,'" Victoria said. "As a family growing up, there were seven of us, and even in death, seven remain. We were just that kind of family — never forgetting the others."

— Of War and Life is a twice-monthly column by Jannette Jauregui that tells the stories of Ventura County's veterans. Veterans who want to share their stories can contact her by e-mail at jmjaureg@callutheran.edu or by mail at Jannette Jauregui, c/o Ventura County Star editorial department, P.O. Box 6006, Camarillo, CA 93011. The information included in this report is based on the recollections of the veterans.