Remembering the past, so we don't repeat it....
It's that day of the year again, and again, I'm telling my dad's story.
Born in 1925, to a family of thirteen, he dropped out of school in the eighth grade to go to work. And then the war came along, and rather than be drafted into the Army, my dad and his brothers all joined the Navy. Albert, Bill, Henry, Duffy. Nobby was too young.
At the age of 19, my dad was sitting on a ship off the coast of Normandy, watching the troops go 'over the top'. He was a 'pharmacist's mate', which in the Navy-speak of the day meant a medic. He never really talked about that day, except to say he was there. Years later, after seeing a bit of 'Saving Private Ryan' on tv, he said it was years before he could close his eyes and not see the carnage on the beach that day. The few stories he told of his time in the war were lighthearted and full of fun - he never wanted to dwell on the ugliness.
He came home, got his high school GED and went on to become an anesthesiologist. He was recalled to the Navy and served in Japan during the Korean War, but fortunately was spared Vietnam.
Now that he's gone, there's not a day goes by that I don't think about him, and about his life. He overcame so much, and he served with pride, and he came home and built a good life.
For what he and his brothers did, without a second thought - for what his generation did, here and overseas; sacrificing so much so that those left behind could build a future...thank you. We must never forget, and we must never stop striving for peace.
Born in 1925, to a family of thirteen, he dropped out of school in the eighth grade to go to work. And then the war came along, and rather than be drafted into the Army, my dad and his brothers all joined the Navy. Albert, Bill, Henry, Duffy. Nobby was too young.
At the age of 19, my dad was sitting on a ship off the coast of Normandy, watching the troops go 'over the top'. He was a 'pharmacist's mate', which in the Navy-speak of the day meant a medic. He never really talked about that day, except to say he was there. Years later, after seeing a bit of 'Saving Private Ryan' on tv, he said it was years before he could close his eyes and not see the carnage on the beach that day. The few stories he told of his time in the war were lighthearted and full of fun - he never wanted to dwell on the ugliness.
He came home, got his high school GED and went on to become an anesthesiologist. He was recalled to the Navy and served in Japan during the Korean War, but fortunately was spared Vietnam.
Now that he's gone, there's not a day goes by that I don't think about him, and about his life. He overcame so much, and he served with pride, and he came home and built a good life.
For what he and his brothers did, without a second thought - for what his generation did, here and overseas; sacrificing so much so that those left behind could build a future...thank you. We must never forget, and we must never stop striving for peace.