Steubenhoosier Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 Unfortunately lost in the coronavirus pandemic, this year marks the 75th anniversary of WWII ending. This Memorial Day weekend certainly is different than any other, but the men and women who served, fought, died, or are still living deserve our deepest respect and gratitude. Without them, our lives would definitely not be what they are today. I’ll admit, I was oblivious to this anniversary. The most recent issue of National Geographic devotes the cover story to telling the stories of survivors from this terrible war. Americans, Brits for sure, but also the perspectives of Germans, Soviets, and Japanese. All interviewed are over 90 and some over 100. One person died between the time of his interview and when the magazine was published. Every story tells of people who are just trying to survive, and not surprisingly, many of the survivors have had a change of heart as to what they thought they were fighting for. If someone in your family or in your acquaintance was part of the Greatest Generation please remember the sacrifice they made for their country and its future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IUFLA Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 Had and uncle (Mom's brother) that was at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941 (USS Raleigh). He survived but it haunted him. My wife's father was in the Battle of the Bulge, including the rescue at Bastogne. He couldn't even talk about it... Both have unfortunately passed on... They absolutely WERE the "Greatest Generation." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeking6 Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 Something I learned yesterday. Indy has the 2nd most war memorials/monuments in the country with D.C. being first. Admittedly didn't know that. I think the next time I'm riding downtown I'm going to stop and pay a little closer attention to these. https://do317.com/p/indianapolis-monuments-memorials Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rico Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 I had 3 Uncles that served during WWII. All 3 in the Army. Tom was a mechanic, never saw action. Frank landed on D-Day and ended up in Berlin. Robert was in the Pacific theater and was at Iwo Jima where he was wounded. All 3 lived productive lives. Tom owned a gas station/garage. Frank went to work for GM. And Robert was co-owner of 2 bars. We miss them now at family reunions but we have never forgot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drroogh Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 My Dad was in the Army Air Corp, he was stationed in Arizona as an electronics tech. Probably his biggest contribution to the War was installing updated electronics in P51 Mustangs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btownqb Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 My grandpa was a Marine in WWII. Lied about his age when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, so he could serve. Was on Okinawa, Saipan, and Tarawa. He had awful flash backs later in life, especially when his alzheimers set in. Best person I've ever met, and I am proud knowing he was part of the greatest generation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IUFLA Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 Little follow up story on my Uncle... After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, my Mom, her sister, and her Mom didn't hear anything at all about the fate of the Raleigh and my uncle. News didn't travel so fast then. On the 10th day they got a letter from my uncle that said "Dear Family" and was censored out until a line that said "I'm fine." Censored out again until the end where it said "Love, Mark." I can't even imagine how brutal waiting for any sliver of news was... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milehiiu Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 May GOD bless all who gave the ultimate sacrifice in serving our great nation. Both before and after the "The Greatest Generation". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milehiiu Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 3 minutes ago, IUFLA said: Little follow up story on my Uncle... After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, my Mom, her sister, and her Mom didn't hear anything at all about the fate of the Raleigh and my uncle. News didn't travel so fast then. On the 10th day they got a letter from my uncle that said "Dear Family" and was censored out until a line that said "I'm fine." Censored out again until the end where it said "Love, Mark." I can't even imagine how brutal waiting for any sliver of news was... If you ever get a chance to visit Pearl Harbor. I highly recommend it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btownqb Posted May 25, 2020 Report Share Posted May 25, 2020 2 hours ago, IUFLA said: Little follow up story on my Uncle... After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, my Mom, her sister, and her Mom didn't hear anything at all about the fate of the Raleigh and my uncle. News didn't travel so fast then. On the 10th day they got a letter from my uncle that said "Dear Family" and was censored out until a line that said "I'm fine." Censored out again until the end where it said "Love, Mark." I can't even imagine how brutal waiting for any sliver of news was... Fascinating honestly. My grandpa and great grandpa came up with a code so my grandma, great grandma, and great grandpa all knew where he was. I don't know the details of the code because my dad wasn't born until 1954 and you didn't talk about the war to grandpa unless he brought it up. They all knew where he was 90% of the time or when he was about to move into battle. Funny story.. my grandpa was asked by the Reds to come try out for them when he got back, he was a lefty with a fastball with movement. He wasn't going to be on their active roster, but they were interested in him. He decided working in a factory and then later on owning his own junkyard was a better life for him. Grew up dirt poor (like most loved ones in this thread) during the depression. Best story I have of my grandpa, he was on leave between missions in the Pacific. Came home and my grandmother (they weren't married at the time) told my grandpa there had been another guy hitting on her, grandpa wasn't one of the nicest people to be around in those times, he marched to the guys house and kicked his ass on the guys front yard and told the guy if he looked at my grandmother again they'd never find the guys body. 🤷♂️ you didn't mess with that dude lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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