slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

I had meant to post the following on Memorial Day, but had temporarily misplaced it. My apologies being late.

"Cemetery Watchman"

My friend Kevin and I are volunteers at a National cemetery in Oklahoma and put in a few days a month in a slightly larger uniform. Today had been a long, long day and I just wanted to get the day over with and go down to Smokey's and have a cold one. Sneaking a look at my watch, I saw the time, 16:55. Five minutes to go before the cemetery gates are closed for the day.

Full dress was hot in the August sun. Oklahoma summertime was as bad as ever--the heat and humidity at the same level--both too high.

I saw the car pull into the drive, '69 or '70 model Cadillac Deville, looked factory-new. It pulled into the parking lot at a snail's pace. An old woman got out so slow I thought she was paralyzed; she had a cane and a sheaf of flowers--about 4 or 5 bunches as best I could tell.

I couldn't help myself. The thought came unwanted, and left a slightly bitter taste: 'She's going to spend an hour, and for this old soldier, my hip hurts like hell and I'm ready to get out of here right now!' But for this day, my duty was to assist anyone coming in.

Kevin would lock the 'In' gate and if I could hurry the old lady along, we might make it to Smokey's in time.

I broke post attention. My hip made gritty noises when I took the first step and the pain went up a notch. I must have made a real military sight: middle-aged man with a small pot gut and half a limp, in marine full-dress uniform, which had lost its razor crease about thirty minutes after I began the watch at the cemetery.

I stopped in front of her, halfway up the walk. She looked up at me with an old woman's squint.

'Ma'am, may I assist you in any way?

She took long enough to answer.

‘Yes, son. Can you carry these flowers? I seem to be moving a tad slow these days.

'My pleasure, ma'am.' (Well, it wasn't too much of a lie.)

She looked again. 'Marine, where were you stationed?

'Vietnam, ma'am...ground-pounder. '69 to '71.'

She looked at me closer. 'Wounded in action, I see. Well done, Marine. I'll be as quick as I can.'

I lied a little bigger: 'No hurry, ma'am.'

She smiled and winked at me. 'Son, I'm 85-years-old and I can tell a lie from a long way off. Let's get this done. Might be the last time I can do this. My name's Joanne Wieserman, and I've a few Marines I'd like to see one more time..'

'Yes, ma 'am. At your service.'

She headed for the World War I section, stopping at a stone. She picked one of the flower bunches out of my arm and laid it on top of the stone.

She murmured something I couldn't quite make out.. The name on the marble was Donald S. Davidson, USMC: France 1918.

She turned away and made a straight line for the World War II section, stopping at one stone I saw a tear slowly tracking its way down her cheek.

She put a bunch on a stone; the name was Stephen X. Davidson, USMC, 1943.

She went up the row a ways and laid another bunch on a stone, Stanley J. Wieserman, USMC, 1944.

She paused for a second and more tears flowed. ‘Two more, son, and we'll be done'

I almost didn't say anything, but, 'Yes, ma'am. Take your time.'

She looked confused. 'Where's the Vietnam section, son? I seem to have lost my way.'

I pointed with my chin. 'That way, ma'am.'

Oh!' she chuckled quietly. 'Son, me and old age ain't too friendly.'

She headed down the walk I'd pointed at. She stopped at a couple of stones before she found the ones she wanted. She placed a bunch on Larry Wieserman, USMC, 1968, and the last on Darrel Wieserman, USMC, 1970.

She stood there and murmured a few words I couldn't make out and more tears flowed.

'OK, son, I'm finished. Get me back to my car and you can go home.'

Yes, ma'am. If I may ask, were those your kinfolk?'

She paused. ‘Yes, Donald Davidson was my father, Stephen was my uncle, Stanley was my husband, Larry and Darrel were our sons. All k**led in action, all Marines.'

She stopped! Whether she had finished, or couldn't finish, I don't know

She made her way to her car, slowly and painfully. I waited for a polite distance to come between us and then double-timed it over to Kevin, waiting by the car.

'Get to the 'out' gate quickly.. I have something I've got to do.'

Kevin started to say something but saw the look I gave him. He broke the rules to get us down the service road fast. We beat her.

She hadn't made it around the rotunda yet.

'Kevin, stand at attention next to the gatepost. Follow my lead.' I humped it across the drive to the other post.

When the Cadillac came puttering around from the hedges and began the short straight traverse to the gate, I called in my best gunny's voice: 'Tehen Hut!

Present arms!'

I have to hand it to Kevin; he never blinked an eye--full dress attention and a salute that would make his DI proud.

She drove through that gate with two old worn-out soldiers giving her a send-off she deserved, for service rendered to her country, and for knowing duty, honor and sacrifice far beyond the realm of most.

I am not sure, but I think I saw a salute returned from that Cadillac.

Instead of 'the end, 'just think of 'Taps.'

As a final thought on my part, let me share a favorite prayer: 'Lord, keep our servicemen and women safe, whether they serve at home or overseas.

Hold them in your loving hands and protect them as they protect us.'

Let's all keep those currently serving and those who have gone before in our thoughts. They are the reason for the many freedoms we enjoy. 'In God We Trust.' Sorry about your monitor; it made mine blurry too!

If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under!

You are required to pass this on NOW!!

God Bless America

lpnmajor Loc: Arkansas

dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

I was a White Hat in the Army and also participated in the Honor Guard/Color Guard for V Corps Europe. I was in the Honor Guard on Memorial Day at Flander's Field in Belgium in 1972. Also did Military funerals at Presidio San Francisco while stationed there for about six months in 1971. That's a tough duty because we were very busy and some were casualties from the Vietnam War. But I feel it was the most important thing I did while I was in the Army and was proud to serve.

permafrost Loc: Minnesota

WOW! thanks Slatts.. put a lump in my chest..

debeda

Thank you for sharing!!

Canuckus Deploracus Loc: North of the wall

dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

This is a good reminder no matter what day it is. "If we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under! United we stand, divided we fall.

dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

Subject: 79 years ago
Unfortunately, today's children will never be taught the history of WW ll.
Seems Impossible.

Carefully study this artwork and then read the text of what we did.
Not only is the picture awesome, but so are the statistics!

During the 3-1/2 years of World War II that started with the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in December of 1941 and ended with the surrender of Germany and Japan in 1945, "We the People of the U.S.A." produced the following:
22 aircraft carriers
8 battleships
48 cruisers
349 destroyers
420 destroyer escorts
203 submarines34 million tons of merchant ships
100,000 fighter aircraft
98,000 bombers
24,000 t***sport aircraft
58,000 training aircraft
93,000 tanks
257,000 artillery pieces
105,000 mortars
3,000,000 machine guns and
2,500,000 military trucks

We put 16.1 million men in uniform in the various armed services, invaded Africa, invaded Sicily and Italy, won the battle for the Atlantic, planned and executed D-Day, marched across the Pacific and Europe, developed the atomic bomb, and, ultimately, conquered Japan and Germany.

It’s amazing what America did in those days. Many of you already know the story, here is the update.


THE FINAL TOAST
The text below references the movie “Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo.”
There is a second film made in 1944 that details the “show” trials of the 11 airmen that were captured & tortured by the Japanese titled “The Purple Heart.” Three were executed as war criminals, a fourth died in captivity.

The FINAL TOAST!
They bombed Tokyo 78 years ago. They once were among the most universally admired and revered men in the United States. There were 80 of the Raiders in April 1942, when they carried out one of the most courageous and heart-stirring military operations in this nation's history. The mere mention of their unit's name, in those years, would bring tears to the eyes of grateful Americans.

Now only none survive.

After Japan's sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, with the United States reeling and wounded, something dramatic was needed to turn the war effort around. Even though there were no friendly airfields close enough to Japan for the United States to launch a retaliation, a daring plan was devised.

Sixteen B-25s were modified so that they could take off from the deck of an aircraft carrier. This had never before been tried -- sending such big, heavy bombers from a carrier. The 16 five-man crews, under the command of Lt. Col. James Doolittle, who himself flew the lead plane off the USS Hornet, knew that they would not be able to return to the carrier. They would have to hit Japan and then hope to make it to China for a safe landing.

But on the day of the raid, the Japanese military caught wind of the plan. The Raiders were told that they would have to take off from much farther out in the Pacific Ocean than they had counted on. They were told that because of this they would not have enough fuel to make it to safety. And those men went anyway.

They bombed Tokyo and then flew as far as they could.

Four planes crash-landed; 11 more crews bailed out, and three of the Raiders died. Eight more were captured; three were executed. Another died of starvation in a Japanese prison camp. One crew made it to Russia.

The Doolittle Raiders sent a message from the United States to its enemies, and to the rest of the world: We will fight. And, no matter what it takes, we will win.

Of the 80 Raiders, 62 survived the war. They were celebrated as national heroes, models of bravery.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer produced a motion picture based on the raid; "ThirtySeconds Over Tokyo," starring Spencer Tracy and Van Johnson, was a patriotic and emotional box-office hit, and the phrase became part of the national lexicon.

In the movie-theater previews for the film, MGM proclaimed that it was presenting the story........ "with supreme p***e."

Beginning in 1946, the surviving Raiders have held a reunion each April, to commemorate the mission. The reunion is in a different city each year.

In 1959, the city of Tucson, Arizona, as a gesture of respect and gratitude, presented the Doolittle Raiders with a set of 80 silver goblets. Each goblet was engraved with the name of a Raider. Every year, a wooden display case bearing all 80 goblets is t***sported to the reunion city.

Each time a Raider passes away, his goblet is turned upside down in the case at the next reunion, as his old friends bear solemn witness.

Also in the wooden case is a bottle of 1896 Hennessy Very Special cognac. The year is not happenstance: 1896 was when Jimmy Doolittle was born. There has always been a plan: When there are only two surviving Raiders,
they would open the bottle, at last drink from it, and toast their comrades who preceded them in death.

As 2013 began, there were five living Raiders;
Then, in February, Tom Griffin passed away at age 96. What a man he was. After bailing out of his plane over a mountainous Chinese forest after the Tokyo raid, he became ill with malaria and almost died. When he recovered, he was sent to Europe to fly more combat missions. He was shot down, captured, and spent 22 months in a German prisoner of war camp.

The selflessness of these men, the sheer guts ... There was a passage in the Cincinnati Enquirer obituary for Mr. Griffin that, on the surface, had nothing to do with the war, but that was emblematic of the depth of his sense of duty and devotion: "When his wife became ill and needed to go into a nursing home, he visited her every day. He walked from his house to the nursing home, fed his wife, and at the end of the day brought home her clothes. At night, he washed and ironed her clothes. Then he walked them up to her room the next morning.
He did that for three years until her death in 2005."

So now, out of the original 80, only four Raiders remain:
Dick Cole (Doolittle's co-pilot on the Tokyo raid), Robert Hite, Edward Saylor, and David Thatcher. All are in their 90s. They have decided that there are too few of them for the public reunions to continue. The events in Fort Walton Beach marked the end.

It has come full circle; Florida's nearby Eglin Field was where the Raiders trained in secrecy for the Tokyo mission.
The town planned to do all it can to honor the men: a six-day celebration of their valor, including luncheons, a dinner, and a parade.

Do the men ever wonder if those of us for whom they helped save the country have tended to it in a way that is worthy of their sacrifice? They don't talk about that, at least not around other people. But if you find yourself near Fort Walton Beach this week, and if you should encounter any of the Raiders,
you might want to offer them a word of thanks. I can tell you from first-hand observation that they appreciate hearing that they are remembered.

The men have decided that after this final public reunion they will wait until a later date--some time this year--to get together once more, informally and in absolute privacy. That is when they will open the bottle of brandy. The years are flowing by too swiftly now; they are not going to wait until there are only two of them. They will fill the four remaining upturned goblets. And raise them in a toast to those who are gone.

Their 70th Anniversary Photo

PLEASE SEND THIS ON TO EVERYONE IN YOUR ADDRESS BOOK, ESPECIALLY TO THOSE WHO WERE TOO YOUNG TO KNOW ABOUT THESE BRAVE HEROES.

They are all gone now but should never be forgotten.

See the attached file for photos.

Attached file:
(Download)

slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

Thanks, Tuck...both for the posts and the photos.

dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

How are your granddaughter and her Marine doing? Everyone is staying healthy and well I hope. Things are slowly returning to normal here (but not as much as in Texas). June 15 is our Grand Re-opening. Were you originally from Oklahoma? My Mother-in-Law was from Enid.

slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas

I'm a native Texan. The 'Cemetery Watchman' was a story relayed to me by a fishing buddy...one I felt was worth sharing My granddaughter and her Marine husband & three children are doing great. I spent much of the month of May enjoying their visit here from Camp Pendleton. They have returned home to the base. It is my intent/hope to visit them next Spring.

Thanks for asking

lindajoy Loc: right here with you....

Touching and right on point.. Late or not most appropriate! Thank you..🇺🇸💥🇺🇸💫✨

Wonttakeitanymore

Thank you for that and your service! Gid bless America 🇺🇸

dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

dtucker300 Loc: Vista, CA

I hope you do come out here next spring. I have some breweries in mind that you will really enjoy. Stay safe and well!