My uncle was on the USS Bush which got sunk out in the middle of the pacific I think, he floated around out there for awhile until getting rescued. He goes to reunions, I think he is 89 now, not many of his shipmates left.
--R (sent from my miniPad) On Dec 26, 2013, at 1:32 AM, Dieselhead <126die...@gmail.com> wrote: Tonight, we took some fresh homemade sugar cookies over to John Hanna and his wife. John was a WWII Bomber pilot. His wife was a nurse. That is all I know. I suspect she was an Army nurse. She is very frail and john lost 60 lb this year, so he is not doing real well either. They have never said more than she was a nurse during WWII and they met and were married. I wish they would talk and record their stories. After 60 some years, they are still very much in love. My uncle was in the Navy in the pacific. A few years before he died, I pried out of him that he was on the USS Franklin. I never could find info about the ship other than it was an aircarft carrier. A few years ago when we went to Pensecola, at the Navy Air museum, I found out a little more. It sustained terrible damage, but managed to sail back to Calif, and then on to NY for repair. I don't think the repairs were done before the war ended. When my cousins cleaned out the house they found pictures of wreckage and maimed bodies. They didn't know what it was from or about. We have pieced together that they were pictures aboard the Frankin after the damage. With the advent of the internet, info is a little easier to come by, but still not much out there about the Franklin. The silent generation, indeed. > Thanks Dieselhead! > I'm always grateful when veterans of WW2 talk about their experiences > (especially on camera). We are losing them so quickly now we need their > comments to preserve what they went through. > > I suspect most know but in case there are some who slept through history > class, The Bulge was the bloodiest battle of the European Theater with many > inexperienced soldiers quickly overrun by German soldiers and SS (there's a > difference as I'm sure you know) with an unexpected assault through the > Ardenne forest - exactly what hitler had done 5 years before when he over ran > France by doing what was "impossible" for tanks. What's the saying about > "fool me one, fool me twice"? We should have known better and been more alert > but instead, we used that area as a resting area for soldiers who had seen > too much fighting & those who had seen too little. When the Germans struck > they used typical blitzkreig tactics of over-running the enemy with tanks > with troops following who cleaned up and killed the wounded and took > prisoners. It was war at its worst, and the Germans knew how to use the > situation to their advantage. > > My Dad was on the Pacific side of the world in the Navy. He wouldn't tell > me much so I'm sure it was a terrible time. He was at Guadelcanal on a PT > tender and he said he couldn't bring himself to forgive the Japanese for > shooting at him. > > when our family was gathered for Christmas Dinner yesterday, I thought > about how many lives his survival touched. Me and my brothers, our total of > 5 kids, and so far 4 grandkids. If a Jap had been a bit more accurate none > of us would be here. > > Sincerely, > LarryT > 91 300D > >> On 12/25/2013 9:35 AM, Dieselhead wrote: >> Merry Christmas to Allan Breed and the other survivors of what became known >> as the Battle of the Bulge. >> >> Allan was in the 82nd Airborne. >> http://www.army.mil/article/117074/Veterans__dignitaries_commemorate_Battle_of_the_Bulge_on_69th_anniversary/ >> >> As with most WWII vets, I never heard Allan talk about his experience >> directly. >> >> 69 years ago was not a pleasant Christmas for them. It is no wonder that >> Allan chose to retire in Hawaii. >> >> Merry Christmas to Allan and Irene, and a Salute to you! >> >> Merry Christmas and thank you to those now in harms way, and their families, >> and to the veterans on this list. >> >> _______________________________________ >> http://www.okiebenz.com >> >> To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ >> >> To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: >> http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > > To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
