Dioris Valladares
Dioris Valladares was born on August 14, 1916, in San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic. On December 8, 1936, he sailed from Ciudad Trujillo (Santo Domingo) to New York on the steamship Coamo with his sister, Milagro to join their mother, two brothers, and two sisters, who were all living in East Harlem, New York. Working as a musician, he began touring the U.S. with various bands in 1939. During World War II, Valladares enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army at Fort Jay on Governor's Island on July 30, 1942. He entered active duty on August 13, 1942 and was honorably discharged as a Sergeant on November 28, 1945.