Sitting on the beach in Puerto Rico only a few years ago, Warrant Officer Fernando Torrent was talking with his father about his options for the future, when they saw a UH-72 helicopter of the Puerto Rico National Guard flying nearby.
His father, now-retired Col. Fernando L. Torrent, who shares a family namesake, encouraged his son to don the uniform and become part of a family legacy as he and other members of the Torrent family had done.
Pointing to the helicopter in the sky above them, he said to his son, "Just do that. Fly helicopters."
For Warrant Officer Torrent, at the time it was hard to comprehend a future as an aviator in the U.S. Army.
But soon he decided to pursue the Army's Warrant Officer Flight Training Program, known as "Street to Seat," and on Nov. 21, his father proudly pinned the Aviation wings on the newest member of the family to raise his right hand to serve--when he graduated flight school as a Black Hawk pilot during a ceremony at the U.S. Army Aviation Museum.
As family and friends gathered around their respective graduates that day to congratulate them, the Torrent family celebrated their own, with hugs and smiles to mark this milestone accomplishment.
But there was even more to come for the Torrent family that day.
A second ceremony followed, honoring a legacy of service that reached back across six decades, and around to the other side of the world.
Warrant Officer Torrent's great uncle, Pfc. Fernando Torrent, was a Puerto Rican Soldier who fought with the 65th Infantry Regiment and was killed in action from wounds suffered from small arms fire in Korea in March 1951.
As an 18-year-old Puerto Rican, Pfc. Torrent made the "life-changing decision to join the military and serve his country," retired Col. Torrent said.
The Puerto Rican regiment Pfc. Torrent served with was a famous Hispanic unit and the sole unit from the Korean War to receive the Congressional Gold Medal. The "Borinqueneers," (from the Tiano name of the island of Puerto Rico), are renowned for their pioneering military service, devotion to duty and their acts of valor since the unit's creation in 1920.
When the Chinese attacked U.S. forces in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir in 1950, the regiment assisted with Task Force Dog, the withdrawal of the 1st Marine Division from the beachhead, so they could be evacuated from northeastern Korea.
In 1951, the unit participated in Operation Thunderbolt, which was a reconnaissance in force; and Operation Exploitation, an exploitation to the Han River. The unit advanced to an area just south of Seoul when they were ordered to seize multiple hills held by the Chinese. The assault began on Jan. 31 and by Feb. 2, with the objective within reach, two battalions fixed bayonets and charged the enemy position, forcing out the communist soldiers. It is credited as the last battalion sized bayonet charge in U.S. history.
Noting their gallantry, Gen. Douglas MacArthur wrote that the Soldiers of the 65th Infantry provided "daily proof on the battlefields of Korea of their courage, determination and resolute will to victory, their invincible loyalty to the United States…and I am indeed proud to have them under my command."
Retired Col. Torrent explained how Pfc. Torrent personified the Army Values.
"Courage is not the absence of fear, but moving forward regardless," he said.
His uncle volunteered out of a conviction that "something had to be done," retired Col. Torrent explained.
"I think he did it out of a sense of patriotism, and also to be with his buddies. Because it was the right thing to do at that time, the call to arms--very similar to World War I and World War II, especially World War II. A lot of people did it on 9/11. People felt, 'hey, I have to join, I have to do something'," he said.
After Pfc. Torrent was killed in action, the family never received his service medals, so when Col. Torrent retired from the Army, he devoted time to track down information about the uncle he never met.
The Human Resources Command and the National Personnel Records Center were able to access the decades-old service records, and the awards were shipped to the family in 2017. Then when Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico that year as a deadly Category 5 hurricane, any planning for ceremonial recognition had to be put on hold.
The opportunity for posthumous presentation to the family of the Purple Heart, Gold Star pin and Congressional Gold Medal finally came, with Warrant Officer Torrent's graduation from flight school. All the family would be together at Fort Rucker, including Pfc. Torrent's brother, Francisco Torrent, who received the award.
Presenting the awards was Col. Chad Chasteen, chief of staff for the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence, who commended not only Pfc. Torrent's service but also the commitment and resilience of the Army family.
"Today, we honored the heroism of Private First Class Fernando Torrent, who is gone but not forgotten, and hopefully provided some closure to a deserving military family with a long history of service to our great Nation.
"I consider myself very fortunate to play a small role in the presentation of the Purple Heart, the oldest decoration in our military, to the brother of a Soldier that made the ultimate sacrifice nearly seven decades ago during the Korean Conflict. I will never forget the look of pride on Mr. Francisco Torrent's face as he proudly received the Purple Heart on behalf of his long lost brother's bravery," Chasteen said.
The patriotic family welcomed the long-awaited recognition.
"Service means everything to us," said retired Col. Torrent. "The blanket of freedom we enjoy here in our land is provided by the military. If there is any way we can support it, we will find a way to do that. Our way is joining the military and being part of it."
The family expressed their gratitude on a doubly special day.
"We will always be very appreciative and always be indebted to Leigh Ann Dukes and Col. Chasteen and the Aviation Center of Excellence leadership for what they have done for us," said retired Col. Torrent.
Reflecting on the family tradition of service, he said it was an honor to be named after his uncle, and to pass that name to his own son.
For Warrant Officer Torrent, with his flight school graduation diploma in hand and anticipating an upcoming assignment at Fort Bliss, Texas, the day's events could be summed up in one word.
"Pride," he said. "Just coming into this knowing I'm following a family legacy, it fills me with pride at this moment. I had a few tears in my eyes just imagining that I had someone with my name-- I have someone who actually died in a conflict. It's just very emotional. It's been a great day."
Honor et Fidelitas. Above the Best.
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