My grandmother used to tell me this story all the time. Her and my grandfather got married in 1940, he was already in the Marines. He had been given 30 days leave and had only been home a day or two. They were sitting down to an early dinner with her parents in Virginia when the radio broadcast announced the attack. They also announced that all active duty military were to report to their units immediately.

My grandfather kissed my grandmother, told her he loved her and said "I'll see you soon". She didn't see my grandfather again until March of 1945.

 

My mother was a girl of 17 she had just graduated high school and was a freshman at Immaculate Heart College, in Hollywood. My grandparents along with my moms brother and sisters picked up my mom from school and were driving out to her Aunts house in San Bernardino for a family picnic to the mountains to cut a Christmas tree.. My grandfathers Caddy, didn't have a working radio, and as they pulled up to Aunt Mary's house she came running out of the House crying and saying the Jap's have bombed Pearl Harbor.. My grandfather replied "I suppose that means we are at war". They,then had there picnic In Aunt Mary's living room and listened to the radio. My grandfather went straight to work after they got home, he was the operations manager at Bethlehem Ship yard in Long Beach harbor, and knew it would mean a lot of work. My father was decorating his parents home for Christmas at the time in Turtle Crick,PA.. he went down and enlisted the next day.. a few months later he met my mother at a USO dance, in San Bernardino, they married in 1946, and were married until his passing last year... well they still are as far as mom is concerned... Dad Served in the Army in the Pacific Theater, in the battles of Lehte Gulf, Saipan, and Tinian! he was shot on Saipan, but was able to capture the sniper that shot him.... while recovering in a makeshift hospital on Saipan, a Japanese Soldier snuck into the hospital tent, and as he attempted to stab a bunk mate next to my father , Dad slit his throat. He didn't tell us any of these stories until we were much older, and always with a tear in his eye! Thanks for your service dad!

 

Nice family reports, guys. Keep them coming if you got them. I have about zero vets in my family, so no stories from me.

 

Information travels instantly these days; quite a difference from back then. Such a huge event, and most folks didn't even know about it until the next day...

I don't have any stories either. Dad was 15 and mom was only 11. If I remember anything from our conversations about it it's that they really weren't aware of the gravity of the situation at first, but it didn't take long before it changed the way they lived.

 

Good Morning and Happy TGIF Eve!

 

Good Thursday Morning FTE, SO/CAL

 

greetings all

circuits are lit! PMs now active and i can post everywhere now. thanks for the help getting started here, you guys have a friendly community!

 

We try

Now you're part of it

 

Good morning all! It must be winter now, it keeps getting colder and colder in the mornings. Brrr.Either that, or I left the swamp cooler on all night!

 

Good morning SoCal!

Got lucky and got a 9am shift today. Yay for sleeping in.

 

Sweet! I love little surprises like that.

 

Any plans for the weekend?

 

Pretty sure there's something that's supposed to happen, but I can't remember what it is. I'm sure I'll be reminded. If not before, definitely afterward.

 

Goodmorning everyone,

Hope you have a Thankful Thursday! What are some of the things your thankful for today?

I'm thankful for friends like you, gas in my car, a roof over my head w/ utilities, & food on my table!

 

On my way to work, sitting at a light this morning, and a stake bed truck turns the corner from my right. Going a bit too fast I would say, and one of his gates hit the pavement and skittered across the intersection, almost hitting the cars waiting on my left. Then the light turns green for the cars to my left, and most of the cars manage to swerve around the gate, except a couple the clipped it and knocked it around a little. I was keeping a sharp eye on it, because if a car had clipped the corner just right it could have gone sailing. It was way too dangerous for me to try to retrieve it, and as I drove through I could not see whether the truck ever stopped or not.

So, I'm thankful it didn't hit my truck.