Today is Pearl harbor day. Pearl was mentioned just the other day for the tragic event that took place there. A sailor that was " upset " with the authorities and in counseling choose to shoot two people. It's another reflection of society today. There is no explanation for that, only that it happened. It was reported on the news and there was concern for the upcoming ceremonies. It was suggested that the base be placed on lockdown and security increased. There was no indication that his decision to open fire had any connection to Pearl harbor day, any connection to that at all. But the news reports that the ceremonies will go on as scheduled..
This year will be the first year that no survivor of the USS Arizona will be in attendance. Age and infirmary has prevented that from being possible. Last year there were only seven of those men left. This year the number has dwindled to five. Having served in the Navy I can hear muster being taken, the names called out: Bruner, Potter, Stratton, Conter, Cook. Those are the only names left to answer in the affirmative. Another one thousand one hundred and seventy seven were killed on this day seventy eight years ago. It is reported that there is concern for the hull deteriorating beneath the memorial. The concern isn't immediate but it is a concern. That hull is also a tomb. Yes, there are remains of sailors in that hull, one reason it is honored in the manner that it is. A solemn memorial, a sacred spot. Many men whose names were listed on the muster have chosen to be " buried " in that hull as well. There cremated remains placed in the hull by divers, there desire to return to join their shipmates that strong. Many told of a feeling of guilt for having survived.
All told there were two hundred and ninety one thousand five hundred and fifty seven combat deaths in WW2. Total deaths exceeded a million. Those on the Arizona were among the first. Today it is estimated out of the sixteen million that served in WW2 only three hundred and eighty nine thousand remain. To say that five remain from the Arizona is really quite an amazing statistic. Those sailors certainly are survivors! They are among the approximately 2.4% of total survivors. That's a sobering thought. My father was among the 16 million that served in WW2, he passed in 1990. Next year it will have been thirty years. I had Uncles that served, all of them are gone now. The friends of my father that I knew, gone. None may answer the muster.
My heart was lifted however by a news story. Colonel McGee, U.S. Airforce ( ret) a member of the Tuskegee airman of WW2 fame took to the sky once again. He was celebrating his one hundredth birthday. He flew as honorary co-pilot in a jet flying from Frederick Maryland to Dover Delaware and back. Surely he is the last WW2 pilot to grace the sky! Perhaps next year the feat will be repeated, I surely hope so. I can only imagine his thoughts and memories as he raced across the sky again. He enjoyed a thirty year career in the air force. He flew his last combat missions in Vietnam. A man to be admired for his courage. The Colonel not only answers the muster, he stands ready to fly!
Pearl harbor, a date that will live in infamy. It marks the beginning of the conflict, the second world war. Because of the nature of that attack it is a date that will live forever. For me it will anyway. Yes, that war was over before I was ever born. Eight years before my birth in fact. Yet, I was aware as a child and that awareness has never left me. I have not forgotten, nor will I. In 1836 the cry was " Remember the Alamo " and today, for me, it is Remember Pearl Harbor. I have that motto, printed on a velvet cloth with the Arizona and Pearl Harbor in the background. That banner belonged to Mr. George Coffin, my wife's uncle. He was a veteran of WW2, he never forgot. I display that banner for him and for the memory. For 9/11 we say, " never forget " although I fear many have. I haven't. What happened on August 15, 1945? That is the date of the Japanese surrender.
This year will be the first year that no survivor of the USS Arizona will be in attendance. Age and infirmary has prevented that from being possible. Last year there were only seven of those men left. This year the number has dwindled to five. Having served in the Navy I can hear muster being taken, the names called out: Bruner, Potter, Stratton, Conter, Cook. Those are the only names left to answer in the affirmative. Another one thousand one hundred and seventy seven were killed on this day seventy eight years ago. It is reported that there is concern for the hull deteriorating beneath the memorial. The concern isn't immediate but it is a concern. That hull is also a tomb. Yes, there are remains of sailors in that hull, one reason it is honored in the manner that it is. A solemn memorial, a sacred spot. Many men whose names were listed on the muster have chosen to be " buried " in that hull as well. There cremated remains placed in the hull by divers, there desire to return to join their shipmates that strong. Many told of a feeling of guilt for having survived.
All told there were two hundred and ninety one thousand five hundred and fifty seven combat deaths in WW2. Total deaths exceeded a million. Those on the Arizona were among the first. Today it is estimated out of the sixteen million that served in WW2 only three hundred and eighty nine thousand remain. To say that five remain from the Arizona is really quite an amazing statistic. Those sailors certainly are survivors! They are among the approximately 2.4% of total survivors. That's a sobering thought. My father was among the 16 million that served in WW2, he passed in 1990. Next year it will have been thirty years. I had Uncles that served, all of them are gone now. The friends of my father that I knew, gone. None may answer the muster.
My heart was lifted however by a news story. Colonel McGee, U.S. Airforce ( ret) a member of the Tuskegee airman of WW2 fame took to the sky once again. He was celebrating his one hundredth birthday. He flew as honorary co-pilot in a jet flying from Frederick Maryland to Dover Delaware and back. Surely he is the last WW2 pilot to grace the sky! Perhaps next year the feat will be repeated, I surely hope so. I can only imagine his thoughts and memories as he raced across the sky again. He enjoyed a thirty year career in the air force. He flew his last combat missions in Vietnam. A man to be admired for his courage. The Colonel not only answers the muster, he stands ready to fly!
Pearl harbor, a date that will live in infamy. It marks the beginning of the conflict, the second world war. Because of the nature of that attack it is a date that will live forever. For me it will anyway. Yes, that war was over before I was ever born. Eight years before my birth in fact. Yet, I was aware as a child and that awareness has never left me. I have not forgotten, nor will I. In 1836 the cry was " Remember the Alamo " and today, for me, it is Remember Pearl Harbor. I have that motto, printed on a velvet cloth with the Arizona and Pearl Harbor in the background. That banner belonged to Mr. George Coffin, my wife's uncle. He was a veteran of WW2, he never forgot. I display that banner for him and for the memory. For 9/11 we say, " never forget " although I fear many have. I haven't. What happened on August 15, 1945? That is the date of the Japanese surrender.
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