The San Benito County League of United Latin American Citizens Council No. 2890 will be hosting its 15th annual Veterans Breakfast 7 a.m. to noon Nov. 11 at the San Benito High School Cafeteria, the group has announced.
Tickets for the breakfast are $8 each and proceeds will benefit the 2009 LULAC scholarship fund. The breakfast will be followed by a short presentation honoring the veterans present and recognizing the Veteran of the Year Award. Assemblywoman Anna Caballero, D-Salinas, has agreed to speak at the event.
Those attending are also invited to bring photos of loved ones who have fought and have died, either during service or after returning from duty, for a memorial display.
This year LULAC will honor James David Perales, MSGT, retired United States Air Force, who served in Vietnam and Japan. He is the current commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9242 in Hollister.
Perales was born in Denver in 1935, and moved to Hollister in 1947, where he met his high school sweetheart Barbara, to whom he has been married for 53 years.
He began his military career when he was 17 by joining the National Guard. In 1955, he joined the United States Air Force, and went through basic training at Parks Air Force Base in California. From there he went to Wichita Falls, Texas, for technical training as an aircraft mechanic. His first assignment was an 18-month tour in Tokyo.
"It took 17 and a half days to arrive in Japan as we were transported by ship," Perales said, in a press release. "This was a pleasant tour for me. No fighting, no gunshots or bombing. Here I worked on C-124 Globe Masters and C-97 Aircraft."
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