Team Veterans' Service Organization: Published!

WWII Vets Write Book

by Centerville-Washington Times on June 1, 2011

By DOUG SKINNER
Editor
dskinner@tcnewsnet.com

A group of World War II veterans have published a book of their memories of their times in the military.

The book Military Memories Make Amazing Memoirs is comprised of stories written by members of the Saint Leonard Veterans Service Organization.

A group of Saint Leonard residents decided to try to have a book published after they became members of a memoir writing club, which is led by Mary Sicora, according to veteran Lou Leibold. “Many of the memoirs we were writing were military oriented,” he said.

The Library of Congress has asked for oral histories of veterans’ military service, veteran Bob Lamb said

Leibold and fellow Lamb started the project and invited others to participate. They gathered writings from several St. Leonard residents together, taking about two years to complete. Centerville High School students helped edit the project.

“It was amazing that we could get so many people inspired enough to do a book veteran Paul Hawthorne said.

“These people have such great stories,” Sicora said.

Many of the writers had to be coaxed to participate because they did not think anyone would care to hear their stories, Lamb said. Many people “feel their participation (in WWII) was insignificant.”

Lamb, a native of Boone, Iowa, joined the Army Air Corps in February 1943. “Combat missions began on New Guinea, continued at Lingayan Gulf on the island of Luzon in the Philippines and ended on the island of Okinawa.”

Hawthorne said he was drafted before he finished high school. “I was in the 82nd Airborne Division as a paratrooper and was a communications specialist.” He was one of approximately 80 soldiers who parchuted into where the Buchenwald prison camp was located. “This was to be an effort to see what the conditions were at that time because the other forces in the American army were advancing close and it was hoped that the Germans would not slaughter the rest of the inmates.”

When the soldiers advanced toward the prison area, “we were astounded to find that the German handlers had already left sometime during the night and the prisoners were running around bewildered, confused and uncertain of what was happening or what was going to happen. It was certainly a sight I will probably never forget. Seeing the stacked bodies on the carts … Those people who wee still alive were as emaciated as a human can possibly be.”

McDonald, who is from New York, said he was originally rejected by the Army for having a heart murmur. On Feb. 1, 1943, he went to an armory in Manhattan. “After being examined, I was told to sit in a nearby chair. Wen I was about the sixth person from the physical examination station, I noticed (a) photographer was taking pictures. Word was passed through the line that the Navy was taking inductees for the first time in the war. After I was examined once again I was told to take a seat nearby. It wasn’t until 8 p.m. that I was approached by a man in charge of the Navy draft. While placing his hand on my shoulder, he simply asked, “how do you feel about the Navy?” I replied I want to go. With a broad smile on his face, he said, “go down to the federal building on Wall Street to be sworn in.”

Veteran Dick Lee said he started and finished his military career at Fort Bragg. “I basically had a nine-to-five job,” he said .”My oldest daughter was born while I was in the service.”

The book is available to the public. For more information, contact Lee at 432-9116 or Gerri Ebert at 291-0068.

http://www.stleonard.net/