A Veteran’s Day Entry

This past May a co-worker approached me and asked if I would serve as guest speaker for her father’s World War II Anti-Aircraft Artillery (AAA) unit’s annual reunion that was to be held in Vicksburg, Mississippi. She knew I had retired from the Air Force and had taught military history so thought I would be interested. I was of course and was pleased to accept and immediately researched the unit’s history, discovering it island-hopped with MacArthur throughout the Pacific campaign and saw a lot of action, including the pivotal Battle of Leyte Gulf.

At the time I accepted the invitation, I had no idea what a personally moving experience I had in store for me. My message delivered to them was and is of little importance. Their message delivered to me was and is…incalculable.

Those twenty gentle men, all in their eighties, were feeble – at least of body, if not mind as well for a few. None, however, was feeble of spirit and I was humbled from day one until day three. I expected the “brotherhood” – but not to extent I witnessed. I expected the deep-rooted patriotism – but not to the extent I witnessed. I expected the tales of boys too quickly forced by fear and necessity into becoming men – but not to the extent I heard. I expected the tales of horror and lives lost – but not to the extent I heard. I expected a lot, but I was mostly unprepared for what I got in return.

The final event of the reunion was the traditional annual “roll call” – reading the roster, identifying who remains “present for duty.” As we lose 10,000 WWII veterans every day, just so, the annual reading of this unit’s roster becomes so very much shorter year after year. A very moving and honorable closure.

On my way home I reflected on the historical significance of what these men and those like them had to offer. Was anybody capturing this or were we merely standing by as these national treasures slipped away?

I did some research and discovered “Veterans History Project” which is sponsored by the Library of Congress. In essence it serves as national backbone support for community volunteers to capture these histories before it is too late. If interested, you can check it out here: http://www.loc.gov/folklife/vets/vets-home.html

I’ve arranged for some of the local volunteers to attend the unit’s next reunion and take some testimonies. In the telling of my experience and the plans, other co-workers and friends have mentioned the veteran status of their parents and grandparents so we are working to have them participate as well. The AAA unit has given permission for them to join in and looks forward to sharing the experiences of other veterans.

As is often the case (especially for modest warriors and/or those who prefer to wipe the memories away), some when approached by their children or grandchildren are very reluctant or even resistant. One friend of mine found her grandfather (a Korean War vet) to be so but asked if I would try to coerce him since she wanted desperately to know of her grandfather’s contributions. So…I wrote him this letter:

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Col. XXXXX,

Sir, my name is Phaedrus and I am a friend of your granddaughter, Jennifer. It was not long into our friendship before we discovered you and I had something in common – a military career.

I served in the Air Force from 1972 until 1996 and my brother in the Navy from 1969 to 1999. Our father also served a career in the Air Force (Army Air Corps) and was a veteran of WWII, Korea, and Viet Nam. My grandfather served on the Western front in WWI and earned a Purple Heart for wounds received in the trench warfare and died not long after returning stateside from lung disease he developed from the inhalation of mustard gas during combat.

I suspect you share with me a particular keen sense of what our young troops are experiencing so far from home and so much in harm’s way. I write you now to solicit your continuing support of these and, most importantly, those who will follow. I solicit your knowledge.

I spent much of my career as an instructor. I taught military history at Tulane University (Air Force ROTC) and at the Air Force’s senior service school, the Air War College. Despite the variance in ages from 18 to mid-40s, I found all my students to be starved for information…from the source…without “spin”…on how things really were. Many people refer to personal testimony as “war stories,” but in my experience, for historical value, there is nothing that compares to the carefully recorded experiences and observations of veterans.

Jennifer told me that you had toured the D-Day Museum in New Orleans. I hope you had the opportunity to review some of the oral testimonies captured on film from combatants (and civilians) of all sides. To me, those personal vignettes clearly reflect the fog and horror of war and fully express the dedication and trials of those who served.

As a nation, we owe our young men and women the very best training and equipment that we can provide. We also owe them an education on the nature of warfare and how it comes about, as a last resort, as a failure of all other measures. We owe them the recognition and understanding that despite the huge leaps in technology and weaponry, warfare and those who conduct it have changed little from the time it was recorded by Sun Tzu. As a firm believer in the value of history’s lessons, I think we owe them, especially those destined to lead, as broad a base of knowledge as is possible to make wise decisions. I believe understanding and recognizing past victories and defeats, successes and blunders, and the “people” behind these is essential for future right-thinking.

I regret not having the opportunity, or taking the time, to somehow record or even delve as I should have into the experiences of my grandfather and father. Neither, as I am told, talked much about the times they served. Perhaps they were merely being humble or perhaps they chose not to resurrect unpleasant memories. Perhaps you feel the same way. Nevertheless, I hope you will agree to allow me to pursue capturing your observations and experiences.

Jennifer told me you were a journalist in the Marines. I think that would make you exceptionally well qualified to relate Korean War issues and observations as you saw and reported them. I’m also sure that you are well aware that the Korean War’s recorded history is much too sparse for the size and nature of that conflict.

I hope to hear from you soon and I truly hope you will choose to contribute in the best way still available to the two of us.

Very Respectfully,

Phaedrus
Lt. Col., USAF (ret)

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The Colonel has accepted the invitation. We should have a good gathering. It is being hosted here in May 2005, by the family of the co-worker who asked me to participate this spring. I’m helping with those plans as well and really looking forward to seeing the old soldiers again.

Most of them anyway. The old soldier in the host family here. The father of my friend and co-worker. Was diagnosed with cancer two months ago.

I pray that he makes the next “roll call.”

This Thursday, do something for a Veteran will you? Even if it’s nothing but taking a few moments to silently reflect on what they have done for us.