Asencion Vela: Family is the Center of His Life

By Charlie Souhrada, Honor Flight Chicago Veteran Interview Volunteer

Since the day he was born, family has been the center of Asencion Vela’s life. This month, the focus turns to him when he will be honored with an Honor Flight Chicago trip to Washington, D.C., in recognition of his service during World War II. In an appropriate nod to his extensive family, his grandson, Jesse Smith, a Navy veteran, will serve as his guardian on this special day. 

Born January 2, 1928, in Mejijito, Texas, Asencion was raised on a farm with his four brothers and one sister, where his father, Asencion Sr., worked. In 1932, when Asencion was four, his father died. As a result, his mother, Eufemia, and only daughter, Dora, went to live with her parents, while the five Vela boys went to live with an aunt in Pharr, Texas. 

“We didn’t know anything about the city until we moved,” he says. He remembers being teased for their country ways and the Vela brothers had to support each other to defend the family honor. 

In sixth grade, Asencion contracted tuberculosis (TB) and was kept out of school. When he was given a clean bill of health and cleared to return, he wasn’t having any of it. “I just didn’t want to go to school anymore,” he says. “I needed to start working.” From that point on until the day he was drafted, Asencion worked to help support his family. 

In 1946, the call to serve came and Asencion remembers worrying that his bout with TB had caused lasting effects that would hold him back. “They called me in for my physical and I was glad that there was nothing wrong with me!”

On March 9, 1946, he entered the Air Force and began Basic Military Training (BMT) at Lackland Air Base in San Antonio. There, he found training wasn’t too difficult. “I was used to everything because I started working at 7-years-old,” he says. “When I finished, I wanted to go to Germany, but they sent me to the Philippines instead.” 

On September 9, 1946, six months to the day after entering the service, Asencion was shipped to Clark Air Base in Luzon, Philippines. He remembers the 26-day journey through parts of the China Sea was rough. “One storm, in particular, gave it to us pretty good, and the ship climbed up and down massive waves, pitching it violently throughout.” After arriving safely at Clark, Asencion was attached to the 28th Air Police Squad, where he served as an MP guarding prisoners for exactly 363 days, from October 4, 1946 – October 1, 1947. 

After completing his time in the Philippines, Asencion was shipped back to the U.S. in a relatively smooth, 20-day journey during which he guarded prisoners in the ship’s cargo hold. He was then assigned to Rapid City Air Force Base (aka Ellsworth AFB) in South Dakota.  

Ironically, it was in South Dakota that he remembers getting the one black mark on his service record for overstaying a weekend pass and failing to report for duty on time. “I went with a friend to go see his parents,” he remembers. “We said, ‘let’s stay one more day’ and we stayed a week. When I came back, they gave me three days of  ‘hard labor’- washing dishes,” he laughs. 

After serving the remainder of his time without incident, Asencion received his Honorable Discharge March 2, 1949. He went back to Pharr where he worked in filling stations pumping gas and washing cars. 

Around this time, a relationship with his future wife, Carmen, began to bloom. Asencion met Carmen and her family in 1946 from working together and he “made her his girlfriend” when he returned from service. The couple married in 1951 and began migrating to Manhattan, Illinois, every year to pick asparagus. “We were always working behind other people, but we’d pass them and get ahead because we worked hard,” he says. “That’s all we knew how to do!” 

In 1957, the couple moved to Illinois for good, starting first with a small house. In 1962, he and his brother-in-law built two homes in a Joliet neighborhood called Sunny Land without any formal training in mechanical, electrical, or plumbing practices. He’s proud that both homes still stand today. 

Asencion found steady work at Hunter Foundry in Mokena in 1961, and the couple watched their family of six children grow and flourish. In 1987, Asencion became a foreman and served in this role until he retired in 1990. 

In 1994, the couple moved to San Juan, Texas, to surround themselves with family. Then, in 2020, with most of the Vela family living in Illinois, Asencion and Carmen moved back to enjoy their children, 16 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, and 3 great-great-grandchildren. 

Nowadays, Asencion and Carmen live with a daughter, where he’s always doing something — taking daily walks, working in the garden, and helping around the house as much as possible. 

Thank you for serving your country, Asencion! We are proud to welcome you into the Honor Flight Chicago family!