Raul C. Tellez, Jr., Command Sergeant Major, U.S. Army, Ret.—Raul C. Tellez, Jr. passed away on Sunday, November 16, 2025 in El Paso, Texas surrounded by his family. He was born on September 11, 1944, in Laredo, TX, to Raul C. Tellez, Sr. and Maria "Mary" E. Guerra, the oldest of nine children. Tellez enlisted in the U.S. Army on 14 Aug. 1964, in Kingsville, TX, during the Vietnam War. He did his 8-weeks of Basic Combat Training as a member of Company "M," 5th Training Brigade, at Fort Polk, LA, then completed his 10-week "Medic" (Medical Specialist) course at Fort Sam Houston, TX. He was first assigned as an Occupational Therapy Specialist at Fitzsimmons General Hospital in Aurora, CO. From March 1965-Jan. 1967, Tellez was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, KY. He later attended the Clinical Specialist Course at Fort Lewis, WA till Oct. 1967, and from Nov. 1967 to March 1968, was assigned to William Beaumont General Hospital at Fort Bliss, TX. In March 1968, he took a civilian flight to Oakland, CA, where he caught a bus to the Oakland Army Terminal and was outfitted for service in Vietnam. He departed CONUS on a chartered TWA 747 out of Travis AFB (Fairfield, Solano County, CA) to the Republic of Vietnam (RVN), where he landed at the Bien Hoa AFB, in Saigon. He had one week of "in country" familiarization / breaking in at the "repple depple" (Replacement Depot), before being flown on a Fairchild C-123 Provider, what the troops referred to as a "Gooneybird," to Camp Radcliff near An Khê (I Corps), where the 1st Cavalry Division (Air Mobile) had established its main base in August 1965.
Tellez was assigned as a Clinical Specialist ("Battalion Medic") at the Battalion Aid Station, part of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC), 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division. His first combat action was part of the Battle of Khe Sanh, when his unit was part of the effort to relieve the beleaguered Marines who were surrounded during the siege of their firebase at Khe Sanh, during Operation Pegasus.
Tellez served one combat tour in Vietnam as a "Combat Medic," where he participated in 25 combat air assaults (earning him an Air Medal), and once saw 30 days of continuous combat. Tellez finished his tour in Vietnam with a Bronze Star Medal, a Purple Heart, for being wounded in combat, the aforementioned Air Medal, and the Combat Medic's Badge.
Tellez remained in the U.S. Army as a career, and later served in Central America as part of a Mobile Training Team (MTT) during the El Salvador – Nicaraguan Civil Wars. Tellez left Central America in July 1985.
Tellez served nearly 30 years in the U.S. Army, rising to the highest enlisted rank possible, Command Sergeant Major (CSM), where he received an Honorable Service Retirement at Fort Clayton, Panama on 1 Feb. 1992.
Tellez had two brothers that served in Vietnam as well, PFC Daniel Tellez, 18, USMC, killed in action on December 11, 1968 and the late Jesus Tellez, USMC, as well as a son that served in the Persian Gulf War, Daniel L. Tellez.
He was preceded in death by his firstborn son, Cody Ryan, as well as his siblings: Daniel, Jesus, Victor, Veronica and Oscar.
Raul is survived by his loving wife of 37 years, Rachel Silverman Tellez, daughter, Kim Horton and son-in-law, Kyle Horton, daughter, Dr. Jennifer L. Handrop and son-in-law Andrew Handrop, sons Daniel and James Tellez, and daughter, Brandi L. Callahan; sister, Dr. Thelma T. Reyna of Pasadena, CA; brothers Donald and Edgar Tellez, and numerous beloved nephews, nieces and grandchildren. Graveside services will be held at Chamberlain Cemetery on Friday, December 12, 2025 at 2:00pm.