Hawaii News and Island Information

Dad was in WWII. Both Great Grandfathers were in WWI. GG Lane died of the Great Flu Pandemic after WWI. GG Rowe died of gangrene  in pre-penicillin days.

As I was watching “Saving Private Ryan” the other day, I remembered Dad’s story of arriving on the beach at Normandy. I don’t know how many were killed or wounded on that assault, Dad didn’t tell gory stories. He just said that he made it thru with only a bullet hole thru his pant’s leg.

Dad was also captured and escaped the Germans two times in one day. He was treating GI’s on the road, slightly behind the front lines. Then a squad of Germans arrived and told him to surrender. Since he didn’t carry a gun and was a doctor, the Germans had him treating their men. Then Americans came and captured that group, so Dad was released. Dad later that day was treating men in a farm house. A German officer came down from the attic and captured dad and those men. But Dad convinced the German to surrender. So, the story ends, that Dad was captured two times in one day.

This story was printed in a newspaper, and a copy of it is in Dad’s war trunk at “R Farm”.

Happy Veterans Damon. If Dad hadn’t have escaped, you and I might not be.

Thanks for filling in some of the memories mom.  Wish I was old enough when I was younger to appreciate some of his war stories more thoroughly.