In honor of Veteran's Day...

 ...I am re-posting the following which was originally posted last year.

And Thank You to all who has served in our military and those supporting from home.

This post is a two-fer...Food (what else?) and a salute to Veteran's Day.  The food portion is a Thanksgiving Dinner. And the Veteran's Day part is that the turkey dinner is aboard the US Navy ship USS Sanborn...A "Haskell Class Attack Transport"...the Navy ship my father served on during WWII.

My father writes in his memoirs: "December 7, 1941 came while the whole family were having a picnic in Griffith Park (Los Angeles area) when we heard the news. Everyone in the park started talking about it and were absolutely stunned." He, of course, is referring to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Just 16 at the time, my father went to work at the Lockheed Corporation "bucking rivets in the wings of the B-17".

He continues.."The War Years...These years were not the most pleasant to remember, but they are the hardest to forget".

Needing his parent's signature of approval to join, he joined the Navy in 1944. He chose the Navy so he would not be drafted into the Army. After joining, he was stationed in San Diego for training which included using the LCVP (Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel) boats. These are flat bottomed boats with a flat front ramp. They were brought up onto the beach, the ramp lowered and the Marines would run off onto the beach. 

In addition to his duties in the navigation department onboard ship, my father would also run off with the Marines, grabbing a line from the LCVP to secure it from drifting sideways. They would get back on the boat and go back to the ship for another load of Marines.

In November he boarded a train in San Diego destined for Astoria, Oregon where he hopped onboard the USS Sanborn and eventually sailed back down to the San Diego area for additional training.

Here is the Sanborn

The photo below shows him posing onboard with his other crew members of the ship's navigation department:

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NAVIGATION

Back row, left to right—Kormann, Erwin Lowell, RDM3c, USNR; Meier, Byron Frederick, S1c, USNR; Emerson, Robert, Y2c, USNR; Lee, Donald Lawrence, S1c, USN: Front row, left to right — Enge, Leiand Duane, QM2c, USN; Dawson, Thomas Joseph, QMIc, USN; Klein, Andrew Mattley, Lt. (j.g), USNR; Reed, Dale Paul, QM3c, USNR; Gustafson, Harold Sylvester, Q2c, USNR

A young 17 year old fighting for the freedom of America...part of the "Greatest Generation".

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This is the actual dinner menu onboard ship...served somewhere in the Pacific between California and the yet-to-be state of Hawaii. Many of the photos I posted, including the menu above were a part of the ship's "cruise log". Interesting to see besides apple pie and ice cream at the end of the meal, you may also order cigars and cigarettes!

Here we find the ship's galley

A few months after that turkey dinner, they were attacking Iwo Jima on February 19th, 1945. This photo was taken from the deck of the Sanborn.

A LCVP being hoisted on or off the Sanborn

Marines and Navy onboard a LCVP headed for the shores of Iwo Jima. Mt Surabachi is in view.

The USS Sanborn's area to attack was "Blue Beach" which is to the upper right hand side of the photo.
Somewhere down there is my father.

I am glad we can all sleep, eat, vote, think, argue, question, travel and pursue happiness because of them.