Lupe Edwardo Terronez

Their Story

Lupe Edwardo Terronez was born on October 13, 1936, in Silvis, Illinois, to Benito Bravo and Maria Felicia Aguiano Terronez.^[1] Both of his parents were born in Leon, Guanjuanto, Mexico. They were married in Mexico in 1916, immigrated to the U.S., and settled in Silvis in 1918.^[2] One of seventeen children, Lupe and his siblings were first generation, natural born U.S. citizens.^[3] 

Terronez graduated from United Township High School (East Moline, Illinois) where he earned a varsity letter in football.^[4] He enlisted in the Navy in 1954, leaving for Chicago for final processing before getting his basic training assignment.^[5]Terronez’s military career in the Navy spanned 19 years, including service in both the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Prior to his retirement, he was stationed at the Naval Air Station in Jacksonville Florida.^[6]

Terronez reached the enlisted rank of AO1, Aviation Ordnanceman First Class.^[7] Aviation Ordnanceman are aircraft armament (weapons) specialists in charge of storing, servicing, inspecting and handling all types of weapons and ammunition carried on Naval aircraft.^[8] They prepare, review, maintain, and inspect compliance with directives and reports applicable to Notice of Ammunition Reclassification (NAR), High Energy Radiation Hazards to Ordnance (HERO), Weapons Certification Program, and Explosive Handling Certification Program. Sailors in the Aviation Ordnanceman rating can expect to spend more than half their career on sea duty assignment.^[9]

Aviation Ordnanceman Terronez participated in Operation Beat Cadence (a training exercise) while serving aboard the attack aircraft carrier U.S.S. Ranger.^[10] The U.S.S Ranger, one of four Forrestal-class Aircraft Carriers built in the 1950s, was commissioned by the U.S. Navy in August 1957.^[11] It was especially active in Vietnam, earning thirteen battle stars over the course of the conflict. The U.S.S. Ranger had the distinction of being the first U.S. aircraft carrier built from the beginning as an angled-deck ship.^[12] At one point during service off the coast of Vietnam, Terronez wrote home that he was able to take a five-day visit to Hong Kong in 1969.^[13]

After retiring from the Navy, Terronez married Yvonne (Schoemaker) on February 10, 1989, in Davenport Iowa.^[14] The couple, along with her three children, became an instant family, and settled in Silvis. Terronez passed away on October 15, 2007, at the age of 71, after receiving hospice care.^[15] He was interred in burial at the National Cemetery at the Rock Island Arsenal, Rock Island, Illinois, on October 19, 2007.^[16]

[1] The Dispatch

[2] The Rock Island Argus

[3] The Dispatch

[4] Ancestry.com

[5] The Dispatch

[6] The Rock Island Argus

[7] Quad-City Times

[8] Navycs.com

[9] Navycs.com

[10] The Dispatch

[11] USS-Ranger.org

[12] USS-rangerguy.com

[13] The Rock Island Argus

[14] The Dispatch

[15] The Dispatch

[16] FindAGrave.com