Family Legacies Unite At the Quarterdeck of the Navy

This is the second Guest Blog from my son, an active duty Navy Captain.  He sends periodic emails, entitled the SUPPO Log, to friends and family about his Navy adventures.  Enjoy!

Ol'Harry

SUPPO Log 21 March 2015 - Family Legacies Unite At the Quarterdeck of the Navy

Every so often worlds collide in a surprising way.  Occasionally, paths cross in ways that amaze.  I recently experienced an astonishing coincidence at the Navy Recruit Training Command.


As background, I'm currently attending the Navy Leadership and Ethics Course in Newport, Rhode Island in preparation for an upcoming assignment as a Commanding Officer (CO).  The course includes a trip to Chicago to visit the Navy Recruit Training Command (RTC) so that CO's understand how recruits are turned into Sailors.  And more importantly, to understand that America's parents are entrusting their daughters and sons to your care and leadership.


The first event was dinner with recruits who recently completed the eight week boot camp, and were to graduate the next morning.  We remained spread throughout the mess hall as recruits sat down to eat around us.  Nervously, they answered our questions.  Some even asked a question or two.  This was the first meal in eight weeks at which they were allowed to talk.  And not be rushed to complete.


During the meal, I spotted a shipmate whom I worked with at the Pentagon.  He is now the Commanding Officer of the RTC, and I went to talk with him.  He was surprised to see me, and talked about the job and all the challenges that come with transforming young Americans into Sailors.
He then pointed out a civilian talking with the recruits, and mentioned that she was a school teacher and was there as sponsor of the graduating class.  

He then said something that immediately snapped my mind to attention...she was the granddaughter of one of the five Sullivan Brothers.


For those not aware, the five Sullivan Brothers were from Waterloo, Iowa.  They enlisted in the Navy during World War II, under the condition they could serve together.  Navy agreed despite the rules against this, and they ended up together on board the cruiser USS JUNEAU (CL 52).


Also serving on the JUNEAU was a relative of mine, LCDR John Stuart Blue, who was the ship's Navigator.  It was not surprising LCDR Blue was in the Navy.  His father retired as a Navy Admiral.  The destroyer USS BLUE was named in the Admirals honor, and was the only ship to get underway from Pearl Harbor during the attack.  Early in the Guadalcanal campaign, the USS BLUE was damaged by Japanese torpedoes and scuttled.


The JUNEAU also joined the fight off Guadalcanal.  Just after midnight on November 13, 1943 the JUNEAU was struck by multiple Japanese torpedoes.  The mighty ship exploded and sank in seconds.  Of the nearly 700 crew members, most died in the explosion and subsequent sinking.  Some survived, only to perish in the sea.  Ultimately just ten crew members were rescued.


The five Sullivan Brothers and LCDR Blue all perished.


The Sullivan and Blue families were about to be reunited nearly 72 years later on March 19, 2015 at Naval Station Great Lakes...the same place the five Sullivan Brothers attended boot camp.

CAPT Harry Thetford and Ms. Linda Sullivan met at the Navy Recruit Command in Great Lakes, IL.  Both are relatives of  sailors who died on board the USS JUNEAU during WWII.

I approached Kelly Sullivan, who was busy talking to recruits and congratulating them.  I told her the story of LCDR Blue.  We instantly became siblings, bonded by the blood of family sacrifice in support of our Nation.


The Sullivan Brothers are honored by the USS SULLIVANS (DDG 68), a destroyer home ported in Mayport, Florida.  LCDR Blue was honored by the USS BLUE (DD 744), which was decommissioned in 1974.


The Sullivan Brothers are also honored today by the selfless service of Kelly Sullivan and her work with Navy recruits.


To top it off, there were two Navy Admirals there that night for the graduation.  Incredibly, both were previous Commanding Officers of the USS SULLIVANS.  You can't make this stuff up!


This chance meeting made the trip to RTC much more rewarding, and my heart swelled with pride as the recruits marched in to graduate, witnessed by a large crowd of family and military members.  I could imagine the Sullivan Brothers and John Stuart Blue smiling up above; comfortable that their legacy lives on and that the future of our Nation's Navy is in good hands.


Until next time, safe sailing!
Harry Thetford Jr.
Captain, Supply Corps, United States Navy

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Prisoners No More

For a writer interested in sharing stories about military veterans, it comes with mixed emotions to hear the experiences of veterans who were former prisoners of war – happy to hear they survived, but saddened they had to encounter such experiences.

Discounting physical and emotional issues, life expectancy tables alone dictate that the number of former POWs from World War II is in freefall.  Nonetheless, a good number of this select group live in North Carolina’s Triad area.  Some I have not met, but others  I have written about in the Greensboro News & Record – Bill Beavers, John Koehne, John Anderson, Tommie Hinton, Pete Edris, and Bill Gundersen come to mind.

On March 22, 2015, the North Carolina chapters of the American Ex-Prisoners of War held their annual state meeting at Captain Bill’s in Greensboro.  Over 250 invitations went out, 21 were able to come.  Leaders were pleased with the turnout -- the dynamics and attendance expectations of this group are quite different from most.

NC meeting of Ex-POWs held in Greensboro, NC.

Greensboro’s Bill Beavers, B-17 gunner, long-time friend, and the first POW I wrote about was there.  Greensboro’s Jane Fredrickson was there, even though she had just lost her husband (who was a World War II veteran) a few days earlier.  Fredrickson was born in the Philippines and along with her mother and sister were held as civilian prisoners of war for three years.  Her High Point daughter, Ann Williams, brought her mother to the meeting.  I haven’t written about Jane Fredrickson, but hope to do so soon.

Jane Fredrickson, Greensboro woman, sister and mother taken as
civilian POWs in Philippines at outbreak of WW II.   John Mims
survived Bataan Death March and imprisonment in the Philippines and
Japan.

Daughters of two deceased former POWs organized the event.  Lezah Arney’s father, John Anderson, was a B-17 radio operator in the 8^th Air Force, Toni Price’s father, Tony Sanginite, was a mechanic with the 9^th Infantry Division.  He was captured twice -- once in Italy and again in Germany.

Greensboro’s Emily Boswell was in attendance.  Both her brother and husband were B-17 crewmen shot down over Germany and captured.  Ironically, they went overseas together, flew from the same base in England and were shot down just days apart. They spent three years together in the same German POW camp.

Rocky Mount native E. Maurice Braswell was one of the first out-of-towners I met, and I quickly introduced him to Bill Beavers – Braswell was a B-17 tail gunner, Beavers was a B-17 waist gunner – both flew with the 15^th Army Air Force from Southern Italy.

B-17 Tail-gunner, Judge E. Maurice Braswell, and B-17 Waist-gunner,
Bill Beavers reminisce about their POW days.

Both flew missions over Ploesti, Romania, one of the most fiercely defended Nazi oil and synthetics sources.  Both their B-17s were hit over Ploesti, Beavers made it to Italy before crash landing – Braswell’s B-17 went down near Ploesti.  (Beavers was shot down later over Germany and captured.) 

After the war, with a law degree from UNC, Braswell served as district attorney and superior court judge in Fayetteville and later on the NC Court of Appeals.

Paul Dallas was an infantry squad leader in the Army’s 45^th Infantry Division.  He was captured during the Invasion of Southern France and imprisoned in three different German Stalags and one work camp before being liberated by the Russians at war’s end.  His weight dropped from 165 pounds to 92 pounds, resulting in a three-week coma during repatriation.  In addition to malnutrition, he was treated for spinal meningitis, hepatitis and pneumonia in France before returning stateside. 

Dallas returned to his Mississippi roots and graduated from Mississippi State University.  His work brought him to North Carolina, first with the Fayetteville Public Works and later with the Lumbee River Electric Membership Cooperative.  He has served in every national post of the American Ex-Prisoners of War, including national commander.  He and his wife currently reside in Fayetteville, where he is working on a book about his experiences.

Mississippi native and former POW, John Dallas, is past Commander of
the American Ex-Prisoners of War Association.

Mr. and Mrs. John Mims were seatmates to my wife and me during the luncheon meeting.  I made notes on everything at hand except my catfish sandwich.  Mims, a full-blooded American Indian from South Georgia, was in the Army and stationed in the Philippines at the outbreak of World War II.  He survived the Bataan Death March, even though one arm was mangled from a bomb explosion.  Japanese guards broke his legs with a bull dozer blade after a failed escape attempt.  He was imprisoned in Japan when the war ended.

Mims married a Filipino he met before the war and retired from the Army with 27 years of service.  They had three children, adopted two, and fostered 20 other children.  After 57 years of marriage, his wife died.  He has since remarried to Nena, she is also Filipino.  The Mims live in Aberdeen, North Carolina.

POWs from the Korean and Vietnam Wars were in attendance as well, I hope to write about them in future columns.

Without exception, each of the former World War II POWs I talked with credited a higher power for their survival.  Mims summed it up, “God has been mighty good to me – for a long time!”

Ol'Harry

This article is a continuation of the Bill Beavers story, ANOTHER REASON HIS WAS THE GREATEST GENERATION.  It is written by a Swiss researcher, Juerg Herzig, who read the Beavers’ column online and thought it resonated with something his mother had told him many years ago – she lived in the small town of Trimbach, Switzerland.  His website is http://standwheretheyfought.jimdo.com

Sixty-five years ago, the B-17 ‘Dottie’, a U.S. bomber, crashed in Trimbach.
By: Jurg Herzig


B-17 Dottie after being shot down.



Saturday, February 27, 2010, will be the 65^th anniversary of the day the enemy aircraft crashed in Trimbach. 

On Tuesday, February 27, 1945, about 2:20 p.m., according to Trimbach villagers, air raid sirens sounded in Olten, warning of an air raid.  Subject of the warning was a Flying Fortress approaching from the direction of Winznau. 

The bomber was from the 414^th Squadron, 97^th Bombardment Group (Heavy), 15^th Air Force, deployed from Amendola Air Base, near Foggia, Italy.

The B-17 Flying Fortress, known as Dottie was tasked to attack the Guderbahnhof, the main freight terminal in Augsburg, Germany.  During the attack, the ship was heavily damaged by anti-aircraft flak.  One engine was lost and the bombardiers were wounded.

As the mission’s lead aircraft, Dottie was designated (PFF).  Her nose gun turrets had been replaced with Pathfinder Force H2X radar equipment, code named “Mickey”.  “Mickey 4” was her radio call sign.     

Major George Albin, flying on his first mission with this Squadron, reported being struck by enemy fire at 1:25 p.m.  Another aircraft from Squadron 414, piloted by Major John R. Campbell, was flying alongside when Albin ordered Dottie’s crew to abandon the ship as soon as possible.

The aircraft was losing altitude rapidly.  The pilot did not think it could make it over the Alps, therefore, his order for abandonment. 

Bill Beavers, a waist gunner aboard Dottie, remembers the mission quite well. 

He and other crew members, who had completed thirty combat missions, did not agree with the pilot’s decision. 

They recalled a similar incident of August 18, 1944, when their aircraft received heavy damage and the loss of three engines over Ploesti, Romania.  Yet, the remaining engine flew them several hundred miles to safety.

Realizing Dottie was only six minutes from reaching the Swiss border, a crew member radioed the pilot to stay the course, rather than going down in German territory. 

This was seconded by Bill Beavers, “Better to be interned in Switzerland than becoming a POW in Germany!”

Even though most of the crew wanted to remain on board, Major Albin placed the aircraft on automatic pilot and along with the co-pilot, bailed out.

Only when the cockpit failed to respond to other crewmembers did they know the pilot and co-pilot had jumped.

“We were scared to death to jump, but Richard Adkins, our tail gunner, told us to stay calm.  Adkins was a big guy from Texas and threatened to boot our ass out of the plane if necessary.  As it happened, Adkins got stuck and we booted him out, then the rest of us jumped”, says Beavers.

Beavers and other crew members landed near a river and were captured by German police near Pussen.  Other crewmen landed close to a German Army Camp were captured near Kaufbeusen by the German Army.

The Dottie crew spent the remainder of the war in various POW Camps.  Beavers was imprisoned in Stalag VII A, near Moosburg.

General Patton’s Tank Division liberated him on April 30, 1945.  By that time he had lost more than fifty-five pounds.  Today, Bill and his wife, Mary, live in Guilford County, NC.  Now retired, he spends much of his time playing golf.

Back to Dottie, she flew on auto-pilot into Switzerland, crossing the border at approximately 2:00 p.m.  The Swiss Air Force customarily intercepted errant bombers and directed them to land at Dubendorf. 

Seeing that this B-17 was not responding to directions, Swiss Air Force fighter planes commenced firing on Dottie at 2:40 p.m.  Even after Dottie’s fuselage and right wing panel was on fire, the ship flew towards Trimbach.

Even though Dottie was losing altitude, the fighter planes remained on the ship’s tail, continuing to fire in an attempt to bring the ship down.  Unmanned, damaged, and out of control, Dottie twice circled the village of Olten, before finally falling towards Trimbach.

At one time, it was feared the damaged B-17 would crash into the Kantonsspital, the Trimbach Hospital.  Fortunately, those fears did not materialize.

Around 3:00 Dottie crashed into a field near Rinetelhof’s Inn in Trimbach.

Soldiers, police and firefighters rushed to the crash scene, only to discover that the aircraft had been completely destroyed.  They were not surprised that not even a tiny clue of crew member remains was found. 

Guest Post - SUPPO Log: Farewell To A Friend

The Ol’Harry Blog consists of veterans’ stories, primarily from the past tense.  I have invited my active-duty Navy son to contribute occasional articles from his perspective in the present tense.  Captain Harry Thetford Jr. is a Supply Officer in his 27th year of service.  As a military history researcher and enthusiast, his work has been published in various military journals.

The SUPPO Log is a periodic email he sends to family and friends to share Navy adventures.  Enjoy!  
Ol'Harry

*********

SUPPO Log January 30 2015

Dear family and friends,

Fittingly, it was cloudy and cold the morning I said goodbye to an old friend.  She was just shy of 30 years old.  A friend of a friend is more accurate, but it was still a sad day. 

The friend was the US Navy Frigate USS ELROD (FFG 55), and I attended her decommissioning ceremony on Friday, January 30 2015.  A decommissioning ceremony is a formal termination of active service for a Navy ship.  If the commissioning ceremony brings a ship to life, the decommissioning ceremony is akin to a funeral.

In 1993 I had the honor of participating as a “Plank Owner” in the commissioning ceremony of the USS KEARSARGE (LHD 3).  On a muggy Mississippi Day, the sponsor shouted “Man our ship and bring her to life!”  My shipmates and I, in dress white uniforms, with swords and medals jingling, ran aboard and took our places.

This was my first decommissioning ceremony.  I proudly served on the Frigate USS RODNEY M DAVIS (FFG 60) from August 1997 to August 1999.  I was unable to attend her decommissioning on 23 January 2015 in Everett, Washington.  I attended the USS ELROD decommissioning in Norfolk as a way of saying farewell to my old friend we affectionately called the “RMD” or “Rocking Rodney”.

Great memories of time on board the RMD remain.  At first RMD was home ported in Yokosuka, Japan.  I fondly remember training in Sagami Wan (Sagami Bay) with pristine views of Mount Fuji towering above the other mountains.  From Japan, we visited Okinawa, and sailed the same waters where the USS AARON WARD (DM 34) was slammed by multiple kamikazes in May 1945.  Amazingly, the crew saved the ship and many a hero was born that day..

Sailing to Hong Kong, I recall battling 20 foot seas, alone and unafraid!  Fortunately I did not get seasick, but most of the crew, including the Captain and the Executive Officer, were down hard.  The cooks could not cook, not that anyone wanted to eat anyway!  I stayed on the bridge, encouraging the watch team and amazed by the power of God’s seas.

The RMD was then ordered to shift home ports from Yokosuka to Everett, Washington, just north of Seattle.  Like sailors of old, the very first time I laid eyes on my new home of Everett was when the ship sailed into the harbor.

Living in Washington State was a great experience for an easterner like me.  There is no more beautiful place than the Straits of Juan de Fuca on a clear day.  The RMD glided through, with Mount Rainer, Mount Hood, and the Olympic Mountains dominating the majestic view.

In March 1999, we deployed from Everett to the Arabian Gulf.  On the way we stopped in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Phuket, Thailand. 

In the Gulf, we primarily conducted boarding operations of merchant ships heading in to and out of Iraq, searching for contraband.  I was the Boarding Officer, and led a small team of enlisted personnel who searched the ship.  With our armed helicopter circling overhead, we climbed from the Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat (RHIB) up the Jacob’s ladder to the deck of the merchant ship.  Proceeding to the bridge, I questioned the ship’s Master and reviewed paperwork.  The Boarding Crew inspected the ship and all containers on board.      

While in the Gulf, the RMD made port visits to Bahrain, Kuwait, and Doha, Qatar.  In Doha, my cooks hosted a Memorial Day picnic at the US Ambassadors house.  Since that day was my birthday, the band sang Happy Birthday in my honor.  Little did I know that I would spend an entire year, and another birthday, in Doha on a subsequent assignment.

Steaming out of the Gulf, the RODNEY M DAVIS headed southeast towards Australia.  On the way, we crossed the equator and conducted a “Crossing the Line” ceremony.  This was my first time, so we “Slimy Pollywogs” were inducted by the “Trusty Shellbacks” who had crossed the equator before.  Though our ceremony was tame compared to years ago, the Pollywogs were tested and approved by King Neptune and the RMD had a crew full of Trusty Shellbacks. 

The reward for a successful deployment was three port visits in Australia.  Darwin, Cairns, and Brisbane were great cities and the Aussies were outstanding hosts.  In Cairns I checked one item off the bucket list by diving on the Great Barrier Reef.

The RMD also played an important role in courting my wife.  She worked for the Navy in Japan, and as the ship sailed east for the new home port in Washington, I realized there was more between us than friendship.  I sent her a letter, which led to phone calls, visits, and ultimately dating.  On deployment, we were able to meet in Hong Kong, Singapore, Cairns, and Brisbane. 

This global, whirlwind romance was probably the reason she said yes when I proposed in the shadow of Mount Fuji after deployment!

And on the way home from deployment, we pulled into Pearl Harbor sailing past the USS ARIZONA Memorial and the USS MISSOURI to moor for one last port call.  Waiting on the pier were approximately 25 “Tigers”…family members who would sail home to Everett, Washington with us.  Included amongst the Tigers were my father and brother. 

The Tigers got the full Navy treatment for seven days sailing from Pearl Harbor to Washington.  Just out of Pearl, we hit high seas and many of the Tigers experienced the joy of seasickness.  A few turned green and were not seen again until we arrived in port.  I took it for granted, but I noticed the Tigers were a bit nervous about not seeing land for over five days. 

Spending a week with my father and brother, showing them what life at sea is all about, was priceless.     

Shortly after deployment, I transferred from the RODNEY M. DAVIS, but the memories will always be cherished.

The speaker at the USS ELROD decommissioning was a Marine Brigadier General, a pilot by trade.  This was fitting, as the ELROD was named for a Marine aviator who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions on Wake Island during WWII.  And the RMD was named for Marine Sergeant Rodney M. Davis, who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism in Viet Nam.   

One US Navy Frigate remains on active duty…the USS KAUFFMAN which is currently deployed and will be decommissioned when she returns.

May the Frigates rest in peace…fine ships that have served our country well.  I’ll always be proud to be called a “Frigate Sailor”.

CAPT Harry Thetford, with the former USS ELROD (FFG 55).  Also in the background is the hospital ship USS COMFORT.

Until next time,

Harry Jr.

Connect with Harry Thetford Jr on Facebook and LinkedIn       

Uncommon Valor Was A Common Virtue

Based on years of writing about veterans, my endorsement of both the War on Terror’s American Sniper movie and the World War II battle for Iwo Jima should be clear.  Wars happen.  Forces mobilize.  Warriors do what they have to do.  They come home as veterans or casualties.  The cycle repeats.


The American Sniper movie was politicized from its record-breaking first showing forward.  The likes of the battle for Iwo Jima are showing some adverse affectations – whether from age or political correctness is unclear.

February 19, 2015 marks the 70^th anniversary of the battle for Iwo Jima.  Affectations aside, a 75^th anniversary, and a 100^th anniversary will likely be commemorated, but why take the chance? 

Here’s to commemorating the 70^th anniversary of the battle for Iwo Jima!


Here’s to Greensboro’s Andy Symmes, who now lives with a High Point, North Carolina daughter and her family.  Symmes’ 105mm howitzer battery landed on Iwo Jima’s D-Day and fought 36 of the most deadly days in the history of the Marine Corps.  Japanese resistance finally ended on March 26th.

TOM GIBBS (L) WW II CORSAIR CREW CHIEF
SOLOMONS, PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, OKINAWA
ANDY SYMMES 105MM HOWITZER BATTERY – IWO JIMA

Here’s to Fairmont, West Virginia’s Hershel “Woody” Williams, who traveled over the country to secure the 2014 Annual Convention of the Marine Corps League for his home state. (Greensboro, North Carolina hosted the 2010 Convention)   Williams was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions on Iwo Jima.

Here’s to the Iwo Jima Survivors Association of Winston-Salem, North Carolina as they commemorate the 70^th anniversary of the battle of Iwo Jima on February 21, 2015, at the Maple Chase Golf and Country Club. 

Here’s to Colonel Sheldon Scales, the last surviving company commander on Iwo Jima.  Colonel Scales, a North Carolina native from Stokes County, passed away in 2014 in a retirement facility in Martinsville, Virginia.

Colonel Sheldon Scales, Iwo Jima Company Commander

Here’s to John Murphy, an Iwo Jima Marine from the same regiment as my cousin, PFC Walter Ray Thetford, who was killed on the 14^th day of combat.  Murphy traveled from New Castle, Delaware to meet my son and me at the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C to review Iwo Jima records.

CAPTAIN HARRY THETFORD JR. (THEN LCDR) AND IWO JIMA
PURPLE HEART SURVIVOR JOHN MURPHY AT NAVY YARD, WASHINGTON, D.C.
WITH BOTH FLAGS THAT FLEW FROM MT. SURIBACHI

 And here’s to PFC Walter Ray Thetford.  He was the only son of a Mississippi farmer who served in World War I.  Of 17 first cousins who served in World War II, Walter Ray is the only one who made the supreme sacrifice.  Three sisters survived him, all of whom married World War II servicemen.

PFC Walter Ray Thetford, died of wounds
during the battle for Iwo Jima

Here’s to the memory of PFC Jacklyn Harold Lucas, a graduate of High Point University.  Lucas earned the Medal of Honor on Iwo Jima at the age of 17 years and six days – the youngest Marine in history to win this award.  He planned to present his medal to High Point University on Alumni Day, 2008.  He passed away before that date, but his widow made the presentation.

Here’s to Greensboro’s Delmas Bearden, who now lives with his son and his family in Burlington, North Carolina.  Bearden, a Navy yeoman, was wounded on D-Day at Normandy when his minesweeper struck a mine and sunk.  He recovered in time to serve on a supply ship on D-Day for the invasion of Iwo Jima.

Delmas Bearden

Here’s to the three Marine Corps generals who led the charge at Iwo Jima: Graves B. Erskine, Clifton B. Cates and Keller E. Rockey – for their World War I heroism alone, these three had been awarded four Purple Hearts, three Silver Stars, and three Navy Crosses.  

Here’s to the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia, and to the Marines who perform sunset parades at the Memorial.  There is no more stirring sight than a company of dress-blued Marines suddenly appearing from behind the Memorial.  Arguably, the world’s tallest bronze statue, the six flag-raisers are 32 feet tall.  The National Park Service does not make mention of a 13^th hand – an urban legend too often forwarded.

Sunset Parade at the Marine Corps War Memorial

Here’s to Marines of the Iraq War, still driven and inspired by Iwo Jima as the gold standard of combat heroism.  General James T. Conway, Marine Corps Commandant at the time, said when a young Marine was asked about the possibility of U.S. troops wresting control of Fallujah from insurgents, he replied, “Of course we can take Fallujah, we took Iwo Jima!”    


Here’s to the Americans of the greatest generation who served on the home front.  According to James Bradley, a best-selling author and son of an Iwo Jima flag raiser, “The three Iwo Jima flag-raisers came back to the states and sold $26 billion in war bonds in two months.  That compares to the U.S. budget for that year of $56 billion.”


Five months after the Iwo Jima flag-raising, the Post Office issued an Iwo Jima stamp.  The cost was three cents each.  People stood in lines for city blocks to buy Iwo Jima stamps on the first day of issue.  For many years, it remained the biggest selling stamp in the history of the U.S. Post Office.

Here’s to Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz, whose quote immortalized the battle for Iwo Jima, “Uncommon valor was a common virtue.”

Here’s to the patriots who won’t wait until Memorial Day to memorialize almost 7,000 Marines and Navy Corpsmen who made the supreme sacrifice on Iwo Jima.

God Bless!  Ol’Harry

This Sailor Had High Mileage

It wasn’t surprising to find the Kernersville home of James and Helen McBride pristine and comfortable.  After all, they have been married over 63 years.  They have no children, grands, cats, or dogs – how could their home be anything other than pristine and comfortable?

James McBride

 It was surprising to hear the home and acreage they had enjoyed most of their 63 years had been taken by a roadway relocation.

The McBrides seem enviably purposeful and organized.  They both retired from Western Electric, with combined service of over 71 years.  They are active members of Cherry Street Methodist Church in Kernersville.  They do have diverse interests, however, which could account for their marriage longevity.  Helen McBride enjoys inside crafting and painting, while her husband enjoys outside gardening.

James McBride’s purchase of several memorial pavers in the Carolina Field of Honor initiated our conversation about his military service.  “I was the youngest of four boys and wanted to go in, but my parents would not give their approval.  Eventually, I was drafted into the Army.  After two days, I had enough of the Army and heard the Navy needed men, so I volunteered.” 

“After boot camp I was assigned to machinist’s mate school at Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, MI.”  Concurrent with his graduation, the Navy was commissioning USS Zaurak in New Orleans.  McBride became a member of Zaurak commissioning crew and remained a crew member until the ship was taken out of service after the war.

It would be easier to list the World War II Pacific Ocean venues not frequented by Zaurak than those visited, but that would slight the ship’s service.  According to McBride, “Zaurak was a cargo ship.  We carried troops, supplies and equipment.  We weren’t in on many initial invasions but we were on several of them just days afterwards.”

I wondered about the large stack of blue binders on the floor of the McBride living room until McBride invited me to help myself to them – they were the official ship’s log of USS Zaurak – from commissioning to decommissioning.

The complete set of Ship's Log from the USS ZAURAK

Just glancing backward through the binders, venues such as Okinawa, Iwo Jima, Leyte, Saipan, Tinian, Guam, Eniwetok, Bougainville, Munda, Guadalcanal could not be missed.

Even though McBride had secured the ship’s log from National Archives for a healthy fee, he did not want the log’s entries over-rated, “Sometimes, what the ship’s log doesn’t say is more interesting than what it does say!”  He reminisced about two such incidences.  I concurred that they were truly interesting – but best not ship’s log material.

McBride and his Zaurak crewmembers took part in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, which many sources call the largest naval battle in World War II.  Others call it the largest naval battle of all time.  Without argument, it introduced Japan’s use of kamikaze warfare against Allied forces. 



James McBride as a Third Class Petty Officer



While Zaurak wasn’t the highest profile target for the Japanese suicide bombers, they were not immune.  McBride remembers the early November days of 1944, “We were there for about ten days and under air raid attack just about constantly.  It wasn’t unusual for “general quarters” to sound several times during the day and night.  On November 3, a kamikaze was headed directly towards us.  Our gunners shot the tail off the Japanese plane.  It went right over us but struck another U.S. Navy ship just 200 yards away -- 26 men were killed, many more wounded.” 

McBride doesn’t begrudge spending the vast majority of his sea duty below deck on Zaurak, “I missed seeing lots of the action because when something exciting is happening, that’s when machinist’s mates are urgently needed in the engine room.”

An Army draftee, James McBride had never been to sea when he sailed out of the mouth of the Mississippi River below New Orleans.  Within two years, he had sailed the equivalency of three times around the world.

Zaurak shipmates had a 50^th reunion in Ponchatula, LA, a crewmember’s hometown.  The unlikeliness that another Zaurak reunion will be held brought McBride, who served as reunion treasurer, to the Carolina field of Honor.

On dedication day, May 31, 2014, memorial pavers for USS Zaurak (AK-117), and three more for crewmembers: LCDR John S. Kapuscinski, the singular commanding officer of the ship, Pinckney Webber, a Navy-Marine Corps medal winner at the Battle of Leyte Gulf, and for Machinist’s Mate Second Class James McBride were prominently displayed beneath the Navy monument.  McBride carefully pointed out that while the first three pavers were purchased from remaining Reunion funds – he happily supported his hometown veteran’s memorial by paying for his personally!

God Bless!

Ol’Harry  

According to this Army Nurse, It Can Be Done!

Lieutenant Colonel Paula Kay Trivette U.S. Army (Ret.) has been written about often in numerous venues of numerous disciplines – appropriately so.

Most recently, she was the keynote speaker at the 2014 Veterans Day Ceremony at the Guilford County Veterans Memorial, Greensboro, NC, sponsored by the Steve Millikin Black Caps group.  With a general, several World War II colonels, and numerous Korea, Vietnam and Gulf War veterans in the audience, I wondered how a young lieutenant colonel would handle this assignment.

LtCol (retired) Trivette at the 2014 Veteran's Day Ceremony

I should not have wondered.  She won me over with the casual mention that she came from a Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin family of 19 children.

Later, I asked her about the huge house the family must have lived in, “Oh, the house my siblings and I grew up in was much, much smaller than the house my husband and I live in now.”  Afterwards, she mentioned her grandmother shared the family home as well.

For the record, there were three sets of twins.

Early in her Veterans Day presentation, it was obvious she would not need a DD-214 to establish her military credentials.  Her husband, Bill Trivette, is a well-known Greensboro attorney, West Point graduate, retired Army lieutenant colonel himself, and president of the West Point Society of the North Carolina Piedmont.

Then there are the Trivette sons.  Their older son, Evan, graduated from West Point in 2002.  After three years in the 82d Airborne Division as an Infantry Officer, he attended medical school and is now an active duty Army physician at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.  He and his wife, Lindsay, have gifted Paula and Bill with their three pride and joys, their grandchildren:  Isabella, William & Ronnie. 

Their younger son, Eric, graduated from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in 2006.  He and his wife are helicopter instructors at Fort Rucker, Alabama – Eric flies Apaches, Alicemary flies Blackhawks.

Militarily, we should not miss Paula Trivette’s siblings – three brothers were Army, a sister and brother were Air Force.

Now that even the general was paying close attention to the young lieutenant colonel, she spoke more intimately – like when she not only fell in love with intensive care nursing, but intensely fell in love with a young infantry officer turned Army lawyer (Judge Advocate General’s Corps) as well.

In the privacy of her home, she told my wife and me, “Bill and I first met through mutual Army Nurse Corps friends.  He later asked me out for a date.  On our first date, I knew he was the man I would marry.  He asked me to marry him two weeks later.  We married six months later -- 38 years ago.” 

Trivette’s career as an Army nurse included assignments in San Antonio, Texas, Colorado Springs, Colorado, Frankfurt, Germany and Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, D.C. 

“After years of night shifts as a staff nurse and leadership positions in critical care, I told my supervisor I was ready for a less stressful position.  My supervisor asked if I would be interested in a nursing position at the White House.  With the support of my husband to “go for it,” my application was submitted.  I was selected as a White Nurse in 1987,” recalls Trivette.  She served over two years for Ronald Reagan, all four years for George H.W. Bush, and briefly in the Clinton administration, before retiring in 1993.       

With President Reagan in the White House

Trivette treasures her memories of President Reagan, “When he broke his hip after leaving the Presidency, Mrs. Reagan asked me to come to Bel Air to help.  I cared for him from eight p.m. until eight a.m. for a month, taking only one day off.”  That begged the question, what did you do on your day off?  “I visited the Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley.”

As a token of appreciation, Nancy Reagan gave Trivette a small plaque that had been on the President’s oval office desk the entire eight years of his Presidency, it read, “IT CAN BE DONE.  “If I ever write a book about my White House experiences, the title will be:  IT CAN BE DONE.” 

Nurses aren’t prone to exaggerate, but as for President George H. W. Bush, Trivette says, “There is no finer man in the world.  He often visited our medical unit, we thought because it was a place he could escape the pressures of the Presidency and just relax.  We loved him – he treated us like family.”

Paula Trivette has worked at Greensboro’s Moses Cone Hospital since 1993.  She currently serves as a flexible resource nurse and relief hospital-wide Rapid Response Nurse – on the night shift, no less.

God Bless - Ol'Harry