After Pearl Harbor, many of our local boys did not hesitate at the opportunity to join the war effort. In fact, according to Valleywide selective service records — Cameron and Hidalgo counties revealed that over 27,000 of our boys were registered to serve. That did not include the numbers from the Willacy and Starr counties.Noe Gonzales was one of those eager to serve and joined in 1942. But he departed with a heavy heart because months before he had discovered paradise.Her name was Amelia, a beautiful 16-year-old who worked at the Dittmann Theater and later at The Grande in Brownsville,