Latino Legacy Foundation

On Purple Heart Day, established in 1787, we honor the courage and sacrifice of all who were wounded or gave their lives in service to our nation.
We also recognize five Purple Heart recipients whose stories are part of PROUDLY WE SERVED—the Latino Legacy Foundation’s inaugural collection of San Diego Latino veteran stories, shared in their own words: U.S. Marine Corps Veterans Louie Martinez and Ernesto C. Salgado, and U.S. Army Veterans Nick Aguilar, Miguel Alatorre, and David Valladolid.
Today, we honor their sacrifice by remembering their service and preserving their stories for future generations.
Watch PROUDLY WE SERVED on the Latino Legacy Foundation website.

PROUDLY WE SERVED: Happy 4th of July, America! 🇺🇸

This Independence Day, we honor all who have served our nation — and we proudly recognize the service and sacrifice of our Latino veterans, whose stories are an essential part of America's history.

Proudly We Served is San Diego's first permanent digital collection of Latino veteran stories. Through the voices of 18 veterans, shared in their own words, this inaugural archive brings us closer to understanding the lives behind the uniform — their courage in service, their sacrifices, and the paths they forged after returning home.

As we celebrate the freedoms of this nation, we invite you to listen, learn, and remember the men and women whose service helped shape both our country and our community.

🎖️ Explore the collection at latinolegacyfoundation.org

This Sunday, hear San Diego's Latino veterans tell their stories — in their own words. 🇺🇸
PROUDLY WE SERVED is a free screening at the Thornton Theatre, San Diego History Center, Balboa Park, which introduces you to the 18 veterans who collaborated on this inaugural project.
Sunday, June 28 — Showings at 11 AM, 1 PM & 3 PM — each about 1 hour, including a live Q&A. Several featured veterans will be in attendance, plus a display of veteran portraits.
Free and open to the public — reserve your seat today.
🎟️ Reserve yours now: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/proudly-we-served-san-diego-latino-veterans-in-their-own-words-tickets-1992297529542
PROUDLY WE SERVED, featuring all 18 stories, debuts online this Tuesday, June 30 at latinolegacyfoundation.org — free to all, as a living archive on our website.
Honoring those who served — proudly. ⭐

This Father's Day, we honor the fathers, grandfathers, and great-grandfathers whose courage and sacrifice shaped our families — and our country. 🇺🇸

Many of them may be like the San Diego Latino veterans of Proudly We Served, sharing their service in their own words, produced by the Latino Legacy Foundation.

Join us next Sunday, June 28 for a free preview screening at the Thornton Theatre, San Diego History Center, Balboa Park — showings at 11 AM, 1 PM & 3 PM, with a display of veteran portraits, as well as the Veterans who collaborated
on this project.

This inaugural project is funded by the State of California / California State Library.

🎟️ Reserve your free seats today: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/proudly-we-served-san-diego-latino-veterans-in-their-own-words-tickets-1992297529542

Honoring those who served — proudly. ⭐

This Memorial Day, we remember veterans who served with honor — one of them is 93-year-old U.S. Army Sgt. First Class Alfred Gonzalez, a Korean War veteran, who continues to travel througout California with the 82nd Airborne Association Color guard to ensure that veterans are laid to rest with dignity. He wil be one of the speakers at the Annual Memorial Day celebration at the Logan Heights Veterans Memorial Monument this Monday, May 25 at 11 a.m. in the 1900 block of Logan Avenue across from Chicano Park. The story of the founding of the memorial monument is also part of on the online digital book, San Diego Latino Legacy by the Latino Legacy Foundation.

This Mother's Day, we also honor Latinas who didn't just raise families — they built community.
From the late Laura Rodriguez, founder of the Logan Heights Family Health Center (1970), to Carmen Martinez, one of the founders of San Ysidro Health (1969), these women fought for access to health care for low-income families. Their sacrifice and strength shaped the city we live in today. Their stories are told in our San Diego Latino Legacy online multimedia book- Chapter 4. Feliz Día de las Madres.
Learn more about our community's legacy at latinolegacyfoundation.org

Photo Credits:

Mothers Founding San Ysidro Health Clinic – 1969
Photo courtesy©San Ysidro Health

Laura Rodriguez – 1994
Logan Heights Family Health Center Founder
Photo courtesy©Latino Legacy Foundation

Every child deserves to know where they come from. 🌱
Día de los Niños is a celebration of children, family, and the power of learning — values that have always been at the center of our community. From the students who stood up against school segregation in Lemon Grove in 1931, to the young Chicanos who fought for equal access to higher education in the 1990s, our children have never stopped leading the way.
Today we celebrate them — and the future they represent.
📖 Their history is in San Diego Latino Legacy: Timeline · Milestones · Stories — Learn more via our website https://latinolegacyfoundation.org/

56 years ago, the community of Barrio Logan fought back.

On April 22, 1970, when construction crews moved in to bulldoze land that had been promised as a park — replacing it with a parking lot for a Highway Patrol station. Mario Solis saw it and alerted his friends who were in a Chicano Studies class at City College. The students, families, and children formed a human chain and stopped the bulldozers.

That act of resistance became Chicano Park.

This Saturday, April 25, the community celebrates — murals, culture, history, and a legacy of self-determination that lives on under the Coronado Bridge.

📖 Read the full story in Chapter 4 of San Diego Latino Legacy: Timeline · Milestones · Stories via our website https://latinolegacyfoundation.org/