page_title: Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps
section_title: Notable Marines of Hispanic descent
hierarchical_section_title: Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps / Notable Marines of Hispanic descent
caption_attribution_description: English: Picture of Baseball Hall of Famer, Ted Williams while serving in the United States Marine Corps.
context_page_description: Hispanics in the United States Marine Corps, such as Private France Silva who during the Boxer Rebellion became the first Marine of the thirteen Marines of Hispanic descent to be awarded the Medal of Honor, and Private First Class Guy Gabaldon who is credited with capturing over 1,000 enemy soldiers and civilians during World War II, have distinguished themselves in combat. Hispanics have participated as members of the United States Marine Corps in the Boxer Rebellion, World War I, the American intervention in Latin America also known as the Banana Wars, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War and most recently in the military campaigns of Afghanistan and Iraq.
  Hispanics are also reaching the top ranks of the Marine Corps, serving their country in sensitive leadership positions on domestic and foreign shores, with generals such as Major General Angela Salinas and Lieutenant General Pedro del Valle. Many Hispanic Marines went on to distinguished careers outside of the military in different fields such as sports and space exploration.
  Hispanics in the Marine Corps account for the largest minority group of that military institution.
context_section_description: The following is a list of Hispanics who served in the United States Marine Corps and have gained fame through previous or subsequent endeavors or successes:
   
  Joseph M. Acaba – NASA astronaut: In May 2004, he became the first person of Puerto Rican heritage to be named as a NASA astronaut candidate when he was selected as a member of NASA Astronaut Training Group 19. He completed his training on February 10, 2006, and  was assigned to STS-119, which flew from March 15 to March 28, 2009, to deliver the final set of solar arrays to the International Space Station. Acabá was a sergeant in the United States Marine Corps Reserves, where he served for six years.
  Enrique Camarena – Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent: In 1972, Camarena joined the United States Marine Corps, where he served for two years. He then joined the DEA at their Calexico, California, office. Camarena's work became well known all over the United States and Latin America before he died. He infiltrated drug trafficking bands and successfully helped break up many of them. He managed to keep his face off the newspapers and other media although his name was well known. Several movies about him were produced in Mexico, and, in November 1988, Time magazine had him on their cover.  A 1990 U.S. television mini-series about Camarena, starring Treat Williams and Benicio del Toro, was produced (Drug Wars: The Camarena Story).
  Rod Carew – baseball Hall of Famer: Carew joined the Marine Corps in 1965, and served on active duty with Headquarters Company, 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd FSSG at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. He completed his Marine Corps career serving in the reserves from 1966 to 1971.
  Roberto Clemente – baseball Hall of Famer: He joined the Marine Corps on September 12, 1958. At Parris Island, Clemente received his basic training with Platoon 346 of the 3rd Recruit Battalion. As an infantryman he served on active duty at Camp Lejeune until 1959; he remained in the reserves until September 1964.
  Nicholas Estavillo – NYPD Chief of Patrol (Ret.): In 2002 he became the first Puerto Rican and the first Hispanic in the history of the NYPD to reach the three-star rank of Chief of Patrol. He enlisted in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War and was a member of the 3rd Force, Recon Co. of the Marines Recon Force.
  Freddy Fender – was a Mexican American musician of Tejano, country, and rock and roll music who in 1975 had a hit song, "Before the Next Teardrop Falls", which gave him national exposure. Born Baldemar Huerta, he joined the Marines in 1953 at the age of 16 and served for three years.
  Lieutenant Colonel Christopher J. "Gus" Loria – NASA astronaut – USMC – USNA Class of 1983: Loria was born on July 9, 1960, in Belmont, Massachusetts. His educational background include a Bachelor of Science degree in general engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy (1983); 30 credits from Florida Institute of Technology towards completion of a Master of Science degree in aeronautical engineering; and a Master in Public Administration from John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University (2004). Loria flew 42 combat missions in support of allied operations during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Selected by NASA in April 1996, Loria completed two years of training and evaluation; he is qualified for flight assignment as a pilot. From September 2002 through July 2003, he served as the Chief of Flight Test for the Orbital Space Plane Program.
  Carlos I. Noriega – NASA astronaut – USMC: Born in Peru, Noriega is a NASA employee, a former NASA astronaut and a retired U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel. Noriega flew on STS-84 in 1997 and STS-97 in 2000. He logged over 461 hours in space, including over 19 EVA hours in three space walks. Following STS-97, Noriega trained as the backup commander for IIS Expedition 6 and later as a member of the crew of STS-121. In January 2005, Noriega retired from the NASA Astronaut Corps, but continued working for NASA as the manager, Advanced Projects Office, Constellation Program, Johnson Space Cen
caption: Ted Williams in the Marines
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