Sadly, I only personally know of one that's left in our community. He is related to my mother-in-law and I see him every Friday night at the Legion for steak night. He was a school teacher and principal here locally for over forty years. He was a radioman on a B-17 in Europe during the war and made 25 missions. He has written a couple of books and still writes for our local paper.
Another, who was my friend, passed in May. He had served as an Infantryman in the 96th Division and had been in the Philippines and Okinawa. He told some neat stories. He said while on Leyte he saw two P-38's shoot down a Betty bomber and he said that several years after the war, in the 50's, he visited Harry Truman's grave and thanked him for dropping the bomb and saving his life. Ol' Fred was an expert woodsman and gardener. He taught me alot.
Another passed in February. My boys mowed his grass and he let us hunt on his farm. He had been in the Marines on Okinawa. He was the salt of the earth.
Both of my grandfathers served in the pacific during the war in the U.S. Army in the Philippines and Okinawa.
Both of my wife's grandfathers served in the U.S. Army in Europe fighting the Germans.
I knew so many of these men. They were everywhere. They were my pastors, teachers, relatives, neighbors, employers and fellow congregation members. I could fill up a book with all the stories they told me while serving in all branches all over the world........most of whom had never been out of Indiana.
One of my greatest blessings is getting to grow up around these men and I'm glad my boys got to meet some of them too. God bless them! I hope we never need such men again.
