Ralph was in his element in Puerto Rico. He was a natural born leader; and he immediately began putting together a team of Continental Americans, Puerto Ricans and Virgin Islanders who soon became known as the very best anywhere. He went to work with some old timers in the Department of Agriculture, the College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts over in Mayaguez on the western end of the island, and some technicians in the Catholic Church who were setting up agricultural and fishing cooperatives; and together with backing from the Federal Land Bank, they helped many rural families get farm loans, new homes and canning factories. Ralph diligently applied himself to the study of the Spanish language and when he was called upon to address local governmental bodies and professional and business associates clubs he often did so in Spanish. This endeared him to the people and he developed some lasting friendships among them in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

In 1980 when Gloria, my wife, and other members of our family were visiting relatives in Puerto Rico, an incident took place at a reception given in our honor in the home of Gloria's cousin, Raquelita Lubriel, in Ponce that bears out what I have just stated concerning the esteem in which Dad was held by one Puerto Rican gentleman who worked for him. People were introducing themselves and we were chatting with each other, when this distinguished man came up to me and remarked: "What a coincidence. I once worked for a man whose very same name you bear, Mr. Will." And he went on to say, "that Ralph Reeves Will was a man of great integrity and compassion; a true gentleman in every sense of the word. I shall never forget Mr. Will's handwriting ... big, open letters showing his understanding and concern." If I hadn't already known by intuition that he was referring to my father, by virtue of what he told me about Dad's cursive handwriting all doubt would have been dispelled. I asked immediately if he and the Mr. Will he referred to worked for the Farm Security Administration, and he said, "how did you know?" Of course I told him without hesitation that the Mr. Will he spoke of was my father, and I thanked him for his kind words concerning Dad. From that point on our conversation centered around mutual acquaintances and he told me of the high regard they all had for Dad.

On December 7, 1941 the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian Islands and the United States declared war with Japan; soon thereafter we declared war with Germany, Japan's" Axis" partner. Within a month or two after that, Dad decided that it would be best if Mom took Jim back to the Continent. No one knew how long we would be in Puerto Rico and it was felt that it would be a good thing to settle down somewhere for the duration of the war. Frank and I remained with Dad; I was a full time student at the University of Puerto Rico then, but probably would be in Service before much longer.

In 1941 Dad, Frank and I resided in Santurce, Puerto Rico, a suburb of San Juan. We had an apartment on Cervantes Street. Mom and Jim had gone back to Portales, New Mexico and rented a small house there. It was tough on Ralph, but he worked harder than ever. It wasn't in the Armed Forces, but his job was considered essential in its own right to the war effort and Dad was doing his best to carry out every aspect of it. From time to time he would be called to Washington where he was given responsibilities other than those directly connected with Farm Security work. He began doing a lot of "cross over" work with other Governmental organizations. On the trips back to the Continent he seldom had a chance to see Mom or Jim, but he always called them and he wrote them frequently keeping in touch that way.

In 1943 I left Dad and Frank and enlisted in the Army Air Force. On several occasions during the time I was in training Dad came to visit me; once in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and another time in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where he met all the members of the B-26 crew I flew