Memorial day

[Todd B]

Thank you to all who gave us our freedom.

[MBF]

I'll second what Todd said.  This a day to remember those that gave all. 

[Jeff Balazs]

Amen;

My dads ashes are sitting here right next to me. I had a long talk with him this morning.

He landed at Normandy and went on to fight across France, Belgium and Germany. He was a First Sargent with a rifle company. Two Bronze stars and a Purple heart. He and his buddies will always be my hero's and who I think of on Memorial day.

 

Jeff

[TrampSteer]

I kinda did the same as Jeff. Dad was part of the Operation Crossroads. Said he was two decks down, back to the event with his eyes closed and covered and he could still see the flash. Scared me to even hear about it. Thanks to all.

[HanksB3B]

My father was a ships carpenter on the troop transport USS William Mitchell in the Coast Guard during WWII. Oh sure he told us great stories about crossing the International Date Line, flying fish and stuff. He didn't tell his little boy (me) about the severly wounded young men returning with no legs and worse. PTSD was not invented yet but looking back at my fathers post war years there were definate signs of it. 

 

Honestly, I don't understand war and can only accept what the bible says "All wars stem from lust and greed" I don't buy into the Military at all except as peacemakers and protectors. I've heard enough stories during the Vietnam era which I fortunately was not a part of. I think talk is cheap and honestly with the shameful lack of VA hospital care in the news of late, am very dissapointed in our government.

 

It seems President Obama is promising the return of our men from Afganistan by 2015. There are currently 32,000 solidiers deployed with 20,000 wounded. I'd like to see our young military people involved in more constructive things than war. Our bridges and highways and other infrastructure are in desperate need of repair. I'd like to see an end to violence, hatred, starvation and corruption at the government level. As far as I'm concerned any one that uses an elected position for personal gain should be considered a Traitor and tried for Treason. I'd like to see our country be the grest  Nation our founding fathers envisioned.

 

To all of you that have served may you recieve the honor you deserve,

 

Hank   

Edited May 28, 2014 by HanksB3B

[Jeff Balazs]

I have definitely had a tough time with Memorial Day since Dad passed. It is not just his absence though. I knew a lot of fellows who served in WW2. My scout master Jim Heywood who was shot down over Germany and spent over a year in one of their camps. A big man when I knew him he said that when he was liberated he weighed less than 120#. Or my old boss and mentor Ernie Ramsay. 5 1/2 years on a Canadian destroyer escort making the run from Halifax to Scotland and then on to Murmansk. He once told me of being on watch during a huge storm in the north Atlantic and watching one another DE crest a monstrous wave and then plummet straight to the bottom with all hands.

 

Then there was Ralph White the only survivor of the Subrmarine Wahoo. Ralph was an electricians mate and of very slight build. His job was to go under the decks on a trolley and check the batteries. Got caught in that position during a depth charging and when they limped into Midway for repairs he was put ashore and they went back out never to return. Ralph was a member of my wedding party.

 

In the 80's while working in the engineering business I met and worked with on separate occasions 2 survivors of the Indianapolis disaster. These guys had stories that were almost too difficult to listen to. I was at least able to put the two of them in touch with each other. I doubt it helped them much but perhaps it may have.

 

I had the good fortune to escort my Dad to the 60th anniversary ceremony of D- Day put on by the French Government at the Liberty ship in San Pedro in 2004. While there we met and talked at length with a medic with 101st Airborne. Dad's unit was among the first to make it into Bastogne to help relieve the 101st. They had no medical support and had to take their wounded to the medics of the 101st. As they spoke it became clear that they had actually met during this battle. I will never forget that conversation.

 

All of these guys are gone now. Memorial Day has gotten a bit tougher with their passing.

 

Jeff

[Mark D]

Jeff, The stories are incredible. Lends truth to the saying "all gave some, some gave all". This past winter I took it upon myself to undertake some research, and locate the grave of my grandfathers brother. My grandfather always told us he had a brother that was lost in the Battle of the Bulge, but we never had any specifics. With some diligence, I contacted the American battle war graves commission. They helped me find my grandfather's brothers final resting place and uncover a story which was truly amazing. My great uncle Peter was a member of the 825th tank destroyer Battalion. There are many accounts of the bravery of this unit in the battles that raged in Belgium and France. On Christmas Eve 1944 my great uncle was KIA in a battle near Roachfort France. After the battle the local parish priest entered his body in a shallow grave near Rochefort. Two weeks later the American army reclaimed his remains, however he was not wearing his dogtags, additionally the names in his pants and coat did not match. And so he was listed as an unknown soldier for about six months. howver, the U.S. Army was able to contact the individual in his unit whose name was written on the inside of his coat. It seems that these two had enlisted at the same time and exchanged coats for a better fit. Shortly after that my great uncles MIA status was changed to KIA and my grandparents family was notified. The Army kept impeccable records and I have full correspondence from the war Graves commission illustrating my great aunts wish that Peter remain buried in Europe. Sometime in the next couple years it is my intention to go to the Cemetery in Henri-Chapelle, Belgium and visit his grave in person.

[Jeff Balazs]

Mark;

Your story is very good. There are so many stories like it that help to paint a picture of what really went on. I am glad you found him.

 

One thing that my father did not have trouble talking about was the conditions they had to fight under during the Battle of the Bulge. They had no winter clothes for most of the battle and little in the way of shelter. All the men suffered terribly. Experienced rifle companies were almost always way out on the perimeter ..... living and dying in holes they dug in the snow and ice. It was very desperate times. I have some of his letters home and even though they were censored some of the truth about their hardships and losses still come through. Dad hated being cold right up to his death.

 

A couple of years ago one of my cousins came for a visit and brought some photos of Dad and his unit taken while they were deployed. Apparently they had been sent to some family member during the war. Among these photos was one that gave me a bit of a shock. It must have been taken as they returned from a patrol or some action. There was my Dad age 23 looking like he had just returned from fighting the entire German army. On the back of the photo was 'Hedgerows" and the caption "Gruesome Jim". I don't know who took the picture or anything else about the source but it really blew me away. I never saw it until after my Dad had passed away so it will forever remain a mystery. I am happy to say I never saw my father looking quite like that during my time with him.

 

Jeff

[Don Coatney]

I have spent a lot of time researching family members who spent time in many war zones. The link below tells a brief story of two of my Hazzard cousins during the Spanish-American war. There was also a book written about there adventure also linked below.

 

http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/HAZARD/2001-12/1007677004

 

http://www.amazon.com/Sitting-Darkness-David-Haward-Bain/dp/0395352851

 

 

[Mark D]

Don, my great grandfather on my fathers mothers side was a marine in the SAW.  Unfortunately I have very little information about his active duty, but it is on my list of things to document. Being darn close to 50 years old now, I kick myself for not asking more when my grandparents where still alive. I will grab that book off amazon and give it a read.  thanks for the post.

[Dave72dt]

I've only got a few bits of my father's war activities. I know he spent time at Pearl and arrived after the bombing, was one of the top two key operators that received the top, top classified communications that were eyes only for the General and as a result was tented up next to General's tent for easy access. I was told it was alongside where the Missouri is moored. He knew Doolittle, wasn't very impressed with him, and I suspect he was in the radio room while the raid was going on. Whatever secrets he knew, and whatever memories he had, he took with him. We tried to get him to go with us on a trip to the islands after Mom passed, he refused. I spent much of that trip hunting up the few places we knew he had been to, looking at what he had looked at, trying to imagine the ravages of war.