The nieces and nephews of Capt Fred Ochoa knew he passed away in a plane crash, and few details beyond that.
January 01, 2010
Niece Claire Ochoa Weaver inherited a rosary from her father, Art Ochoa. She was told the rosary was found with Tio Fred at the time of his crash. Soon after she was gifted the rosary, she also inherited a desk that belonged to her grandmother, Rafela Prieto Ochoa.
The Ochoa family's contribution to WWII
January 02, 2010
Luis and Rafaela Ochoa's grandchildren grew up hearing the story of the sacrifice of their family in WWII: six of their eight sons served in the war at the same time. All six survived their tours of duty overseas and returned to the states and anticipated returning home to Laredo, Texas. The family story was "two in the Army, two in the Navy, and two in the Marines."
The first research discoveries
February 15, 2015
The first clues to know more about the circumstances regarding Fred's death, came in three small newspaper clippings found online through Newspapers.com. This one was published in Clovis,NM. The newspaper cites Bluemont, Virginia as the crash site.