Miguel Zaragoza Contreras
Lance Corporal
D CO, 1ST BN, 5TH MARINES, 1ST MARDIV, III MAF
United States Marine Corps
Corona, California
November 23, 1945 to July 20, 1967
MIGUEL Z CONTRERAS is on the Wall at Panel 23E, Line 93

3rdmaf.gif
1mardiv.gif
5thmarines2.gif
phndvsvc.gif
 
Combat Action Ribbon
 

 
22 Mar 2004

This is to my friend Miguel Z. Contreras who was known to everyone at Corona High School in the early 60s as Mike. As I recall Mike and I were in the Cadet Corps together with Major Pauley, over 40 years ago. Mike was an intelligent, popular Chicano who was well liked and respected by his peers of all colors. I believe that we both shared several classes together along with respect for each other. Mike was tough as you had to be at Corona High and the Communist troops seemed to have a vendetta with young men of this area as many were killed and the 3 towns mentioned here together didn't have a total population over 25,000. I knew both the best and the worst from this area but all of these friends of mine, each and every one of them, were different and special as they were "all" representative of what was right with America until the murder of the "Prince of Camelot" and the subsequent moral decay of our nation. Mike was brave and I'm sure that he and his brothers in arms are all in the arms of the greatest leader and creator ever. To my friend Miguel, I salute and state "Eh amigo, hasta la vista bravado, y vaya con Dios hermano, con mucho admiraccion, tu amigo, LIONHEARTS".

lionhearts@infowest.com


 
09 Mar 2006

Thank you for your kind words. Miguel Contreras, known to his family as Michael, would have been my uncle. Unfortunately he passed before I was born. My father, his brother, remembers him well and I'm glad to see his name on this site. He and my mother spoke of what a good man he was and what a great loss to the family. To this day my grandmother keeps a picture of him, in his uniform, in her bedroom.

From his niece.
E-mail address is not available.


 

A Note from The Virtual Wall

The 1/5 Marines' Command Chronology for July 1967 states that a squad patrol from Delta 1/5 engaged a 25-man NVA unit. The remainder of the Delta 2/5 platoon, a platoon from Charlie 2/5, and a tank element deployed to assist the engaged squad, but the NVA withdrew as the larger force approached. The engagement resulted in the deaths of several NVA soldiers and 2 POWs - but at the cost of one Marine killed in action, LCpl Miguel Contreras.

Contact Us © Copyright 1997-2019 www.VirtualWall.org, Ltd ®(TM) Last update 08/15/2019.