Numa Avendano was born in Santander, Spain on 21, February, 1901. In 1907, he emigrated to the U.S. with his family and settled in New Orleans. He attended the Rugby Military Academy, the Gulfcoast Military Academy, College of the City of New York, and then, in 1920, accepted into the army, began field artillary training at West Point.
During his long military career, beginning as a private in 1920 and ending as a full colonel in 1961, he earned the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 1 bronze star; Asiaic Pacific Campaign Medal with 1 bronze star; American Defense Service Medal; American Campaign Medal; Victory Medal World War II; Presidential Testimonial.
In his memoir, Colonel Avendano shared his feelings when viewing the fading sight of the Statue of Liberty on his departure from the United States on a troop ship bound for Europe in 1943..."My throat became tight and my eyes filled with tears and indeed I could not restist crying...but seeing the Statue of Liberty and the fading skyline of New York, I appreciated more than ever what my adopted country meant to me and I was not ashamed to cry like a baby."
The Avendano Collection at the Louisiana National Guard Museums includes several items highlighting his military career with the Washington Artillary that have been generously donated by his family.
