Photo By Spc. Samuel Brandon | Sgt. Pedro Magdaleno, a Blackhawk repairman for the 4th Combat Aviation Brigade...... read more read more
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Hispanic Heritage Month, spanning Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, is a time for celebrating the culture and history of Hispanic and Latino communities in America. Celebrating cultural and social icons like Frida Kahlo and Cesar Chavez, Hispanic Heritage Month encourages people to recognize diversity and practice inclusivity.
This diversity is also represented in the U.S. Army. According to a census taken by Share America, 16% of the U.S. Army is comprised of Hispanic Americans.
Sgt. Pedro Magdaleno, a Blackhawk repairman assigned to the 4th Combat Aviation Brigade commander, 4th Infantry Division, is a Hispanic Soldier and has expressed his appreciation of the efforts to make the U.S. Army more inclusive of his and other Hispanic Soldiers’ culture.
“The Army, according to census, is the most diverse branch of the armed services,” Magdaleno said. “There’s a sense of trying to gather and belong, a sense of coming together.”
Born in Irapuato, Mexico and migrating to Boonville, California, Magdaleno came to the United States at a young age. His parents worked tirelessly to support their family, his mother as a field worker, and his father a mechanic. As Magdaleno grew older, friction began to develop between family members.
“I’m not very close to my biological family. The expectation to marry a beautiful woman and have twenty kids doesn’t fit with who I am,” Magdaleno said. “There was a lot of animosity between us because of this.”
Magdaleno’s biological family influenced him more than his personal life did. Magdaleno was not a Legal Permanent Resident (otherwise known as having a "green card"), and his work authorization was still pending, so supporting his family was difficult. When he turned 15 though, he could find legal employment as a field-worker. Seeing this as the only option to provide the family with enough support, his father pulled him out of high school.
“I attended Anderson Valley High School before my father pulled me out,” Magdaleno said. “Later on, I realized I wanted a full education, so I re-enrolled at Rancheria High School.”
After high school, Magdaleno went to college at University of California, Los Angeles. While attending college, he received little to no support from his biological family, and was forced to find his own way.
“For about four months, I slept in my car and ate thrown-out food behind the In-and-Out,” Magdaleno said.
It wasn’t until he met Micheal and Juanita Riddell, a married couple, that he received any form of emotional or financial support. The Riddells gave him food, a place to stay, and understanding his biological family hadn’t afforded him. Eventually, Magdaleno would accept the Riddells as his adoptive family.
“I’m very close to my adoptive family. My adoptive family is all about me being happy. If I’m happy, they’re happy,” Magdaleno said.
After receiving his Legal Permanent Resident status, his "green card," and graduating from college, Magdaleno wanted to join the military. He joined the Reserves on Jan. 22, 2018, eventually switching to Active Duty in 2019. Magdaleno went to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri for Basic Training. Over the ten weeks he was there, he noticed a different dynamic when it came to migrant Soldiers and Soldiers who had been born in America.
“As a migrant, my thought process was all about making sure I was being instructed, that I was trying to do my best,” Magdaleno said. “But I noticed that others who had been raised or born had the mentality that they were going through the worst thing they could ever experience. In this way, there was a lot of growth I had to process. I had to put aside this idea that we were different, and help my platoon succeed.”
After basic training, Magdaleno went to Fort Eustis, Virginia, where he would learn how to be a helicopter repairer. During training, he would find other Hispanic Soldiers who were in different phases of applying for their US citizenship. Seeing an opportunity to help, Magdaleno stepped up.
“I became the person that would help other Hispanic Soldiers with their citizenship paperwork,” Magdaleno said. “I did it because it meant something to me. I believed I could make a change or impact for the better. Helping these Soldiers was both a validating and arduous process.”
Now, Magdaleno works at the 4th CAB on Fort Carson, Co., where he helps his leadership as the Non-Commissioned-Officer-In-Charge and the driver for the Brigade Commander. His helpful attitude is encouraged and maintained by the Army. When Soldiers like 1st Sgt. Corey Weber, senior enlisted advisor for Bravo Company, 404th Battalion, 4CAB, 4th Inf. Div., discuss his character, they have positive things to say.
“It didn’t surprise me that Sgt. Magdaleno got chosen to be Ivy Eagle 6 driver,” Weber said. “He is the type of Soldier that doesn’t need to be micromanaged, someone that’s highly reliable and gets the job done.”
Magdaleno is happy where we are in regards to the acceptance of Hispanic culture in the Army. He hopes the inclusivity and understanding towards people of different cultures increases over the course of Hispanic Heritage Month.
Hispanic Heritage Month’s purpose is not only designated for celebrating the accomplishments of famous Hispanic figures; it is designed to celebrate all the Hispanic people in the world, no matter how large or small their contributions are.
| Date Taken: | 09.22.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 09.22.2022 17:25 |
| Story ID: | 429896 |
| Location: | FORT CARSON, COLORADO, US |
| Web Views: | 243 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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