Date of Birth: 10/14/1945
Neighborhood: Kensington
High School: Thomas Edison High School
Street: W. Berks Street
Branch of Service: Army
Rank: SGT
Date of Casualty: 06/06/1968
Province of Casualty: Phu Yen
Philadelphia Memorial Panel: Panel 26
Panel Row: 14
Click on the memorial panel below for a printable photo of the serviceman on this page.
A native of Puerto Rico, Santiago moved to Philadelphia when he was 10 years old. He attended Edison High School and worked as a glassman for Engelo Brothers Lamp & Light Co., Masher Street and Allegheny Avenue. He enlisted in the Army in May 1967, his wife said, because he felt he had a duty to do so. Santiago was a 22-year-old light vehicle operator with the 545th Transportation Company in Vietnam. He died during a firefight with a Viet Cong unit on June 6, 1968. In addition to his wife, he was survived by a daughter, his parents, three brothers and four sisters.