Viola Gonzales:
CLASS OF 1974
Sonora High SchoolClass of 1974
Sonora, TX
Phillips Junior CollegeClass of 1994
New orleans, LA
Phillips Junior CollegeClass of 1993
New orleans, LA
Viola's Story
I got married right out of high school to Alfredo(Freddy)Gonzales on May 25, 1974, and became part of the naval military family. Followed Freddy...(known as Al, Gonzo, or Speedy to all of his military buddies) to new duty stations every three years. Our 1st tour found us stationed in Whidbey Island, Oak Harbor, Washington. While there, I worked at a credit union as a file clerk and worked my way up to a teller position. In 1976, I gave birth to our son, Marc. I continued working until we moved to Alfredo's next tour of duty. 2nd tour found us in Sigonella, Sicily. While in Sicily, I was a stay at home parent.....much too busy going on sightseeing trips than going to work. When we first got to Sigonella, we lived in Belpasso, and we used to like walking through the town, and going to the open markets. Driving was a whole adventure in itself, going up and down the mountain with its narrow, curving roads. We later got the opportunity to move down to Beach Housing in Costa Saracena. I met some really nice people there. Everyday we would all gather outside and let our kids play. Then on weekend evenings we would gather together to play Pokeno. Had friends that were from Puerto Rico, Sevilla, Spain, Cuba, and Santa Domingo. Joan and I were the only Americans from the whole Pokeno group. We had fun, and it was interesting to find out that some of the same Spanish words actually had different meanings in each country. It was the first time that we were treated to a non-traditional Thanksgiving, but a good time was had by all. In 1980, our daughter was born in Naples, Italy, in the Province of Pouzzouli. 3rd tour of duty was in Corpus Christi, Texas. The first time we had been so close to family in Sonora. Marc started kindergarten there and attended Flour Bluff Elementary. He also started playing T-Ball, thus beginning the start of our sports oriented family. After two years in Corpus, we found ourselves moving back to Sigonella, Sicily. All of us were so excited to be going back. First thing we did after arriving was to go and eat PIZZA! Nothing tastes better than having a brick-oven pizza. This time we found ourselves moving straight to Beach Housing. Alfredo was stationed with the HC-4 Black Stallion Squadron. Great people.....we were all like a huge, close-knit family. I was very involved in the Enlisted Wives Club where I made some truly lasting friendships. I met Candy Luciano and Norah May, and our kids were always doing things together. Lyn Butler, Rosie Stoos, and I had met the first time we had all been stationed in Sigonella with VR-24. Now we were all back together again with our hubands in HC-4...our friendships only grew stronger. I was also a Den Mother for Marc's Cub Scout Den. That was alot of fun. I was even part of the T-Ball coaching team for the H-C4 Squadron. I must say that our team did really good under head coach Lyn Butler. Our other coach was Norah May. Let's just say that the male coaches were none too pleased when they would lose to an all female coaching staff. Alfredo was coaching the 10-year old baseball team for the squadron, as well. We managed to stay pretty busy with the kids being in soccer, baseball, and basketball. During this tour of duty, our kids were in school, but we still managed to do a lot of traveling. We got to fly on the H-53 Helicopters with the squadron......getting an aerial view of Venice, going out to land on several carriers, etc. Talk about fun. On our own time we got to visit Germany(Weisbaden, Garmisch...so beautiful), Spain(we got to visit with Charo George, one of the Pokeno players from our first tour in Sicily, and her children....they were living in Rota, but she was originally from Sevilla), Austria, Italy..... Venice, Rome(The Vatican, Colosseum, Sistine Chapel, Spanish Steps, The Trevi Fountain), Florence, Livorno(The Leaning Tower of Pisa), Pompeii, The Amalfi Coast, Sorrento, Naples, and of course we also toured Sicily....Taormina, Messina, Siracusa, Citta del Mare(beautiful resort area...we all had a great time), Lentini, Catania, and too many others to name. We could even see Mt. Etna (Sicily's active volcano) from our backyard. Seeing it erupt was truly an amazing sight. I made some truly great friendships there. In 1986, we found ourselves saying goodbye to Sigonella again. This time leaving Sigonella was the hardest for us because this time we were leaving all of our friends first. Usually everybody got to leave before us. 4th tour of duty was Pensacola, F...Expand for more
lorida. We truly loved the area. In 1988, Alfredo became a commissioned Warrant Officer, and we found ourselves relocated back to Whidbey Island. There I volunteered in Crystal's Elementary School. I transported Marc and Crystal to most of their sporting events. I was also pretty involved in the Officer's Wives Club. We did alot of things for our guys when they were deployed, and also with the kids. We had lots of fun getting ready for their arrival....painting signs and placing them around the base, doing videos, making calendars, etc. In 1990, we celebrated Christmas in early December because VA-145 was deploying. It was a tense time because Desert Storm was in the horizon. It was going to be a very lonely, sad Christmas, but I still had to make the best of it for the kids. Even though Alfredo was gone, for the first time in our lives, we actually got to have a White Christmas. It was so beautiful. We woke up with the snow just falling, and the ground all covered. The kids didn't even want to see what Santa had brought them, they just wanted to go play in the snow. We all bundled up, and out we went. Some of the kids friends came over, and they were all busy out on the field behind our house gathering the snow to make a snowman. It was so much fun. Took pictures of the kids with their snowman, came inside and had some hot chocolate, and finally opened our gifts from Santa. After Alfredo returned from Desert Storm in 1991, our next tour of duty found us living in New Orleans, Louisiana. Crystal in Middle School and Marc in High School, I soon found myself with too much time on my hands, so I enrolled in College. I graduated in 1993 with a 4.0 GPA and an Associates Degree in Office Administration. Upon graduating, I worked full-time in the Academic Office. In 1994, I went to work at an apartment complex for Senior Citizens, and still found time to attend all the sporting events that our children participated in. Our son played basketball in Oak Harbor, WA, and in Harvey, Louisiana(a suburb of New Orleans), he played football and baseball at John Ehret High School. Our daughter played basketball and softball during high school. Marc graduated from High School in 1994, and received a baseball scholarship from Huntingdon College in Alabama. A year later transferred to Nicholl's State University in Thibodeaux, Louisiana. He didn't play baseball there, but he began his coaching career as a student baseball coach. After Crystal graduated from John Ehret in 1998, we stayed in New Orleans until September because she was playing park ball. She made the Jefferson Parish Debs All Star Team, and the team went all the way to the World Series in Sulpher Springs, Texas. They won!! Crystal even has her World Series Ring. After serving in the Navy for 25 years, Alfredo retired in July 1998, and we made our final move to Pensacola, Florida. He became a high school and college baseball umpire. I usually tagged along with him to the games. Both our kids were away at college in Louisiana. We tried to attend as many of Marc's baseball games as often as we could, and Crystal would meet us there. She was also attending Nicholl's. I became a grandmother for the first time in August 1999. Breanne was born in Pensacola, Florida, but Crystal then moved to New Orleans. It was the hardest thing to watch them leave. She had her second child in July 2001. Shortly after Yandell's birth, the whole family moved to Pensacola, and I was so elated because I got to spend a lot more time with my grandchildren. In 2003, I found myself divorced after 29 years of marriage. Alfredo and I have remained good friends, which in turn has made it easier for our children and grandchildren.....they didn't have to choose sides. Our son, Marc, got married to Lori Blanco in 2004. They now reside in Morgan City, Louisiana. Both are teachers, and Marc was named the Head Baseball Coach for Morgan City High School over the summer. Crystal gave us another beautiful granddaughter in February 2006. Crystal is working and attending college full-time. She is enrolled in the Nursing Program. With her hectic schedule, I look after my three beautiful granddaughters. I spend almost all of my time with Alayna during the day, since Breanne and Yandell are in school from 7:20 a.m. to 2:20 p.m. At times it gets overwhelming not really have too much time for myself, but in the long run....I treasure every minute of my time I spend with them, and I wouldn't trade that time for anything else.
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