"Uncle Chelino, was born on July 17, 1913 in Morenci, Arizona and died October 12, 2000 in Tucson, Arizona. He was the oldest surviving member of the Díaz family and I had hoped to interview him for this project. Unfortunately, he was on a ventilator for the last few months of his life and was unable to speak.

Chelino worked in the underground mine in Morenci in the late twenties to help support his brother and seven sisters. During the Depression he was in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).

He enlisted in the army before World War II started and served with the Army Corps of Engineers working on the Alcan Highway. When the war came, he served in the European theater. Chelino was among the troops who landed in Normandy for the invasion.

After the war, Chelino came back to Morenci and worked for the Phelps Dodge Corporation at the smelter until his retirement.

Chelino was well known in Morenci and Clifton by the nickname of "El Buen Amigo"("The Good Friend"), a name which reflected the kind of person he was."

Elena Díaz Björkquist