Comments on: Legacy

By: Tiffany W.

Tiffany W. — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 02:37:29 +0000

To Yet another John #19, neither of my great-uncles had children. The uncle who survived the war and the camps was married, but they weren’t able to have children. The other uncle who was executed on Wake Island was in his early 20’s and never married. My sisters and I have all felt a keen duty to honor their memories and keep their stories alive.

By: Yet Another John

Yet Another John — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 22:36:32 +0000

Tiffany in #13. Your story about your great-uncles struck home. My father-in-law had a chance to go to Wake Island at that time. He chose to go to Hawaii instead only because he had missed out on a chance to go there when a scheduled game between Weber and Hawaii fell through. He was a civilian contractor at Pearl Harbor when it was bombed and joined the Army immed. afterward, serving in the South Pacific. How different our lives would’ve been had he chosen to go to Wake instead!

By: April

April — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:08:59 +0000

My Dad served in Vietnam. He live on a helicopter and he flew from one devastating scene to another. He never speaks of it! I am so proud of him for doing what he had to though!

By: Loralee

Loralee — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:45:19 +0000

What a sweet story. My husband’s family was recently sealed together after the death of both parents. All the children are adults, and what a wonderful feeling it was to have brothers and sisters as one after so many years. Thank you for reminding me of this special day.

By: Melissa Y.

Melissa Y. — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:28:56 +0000

Thanks your for the poignant post. I guess a lot of us are thinking about our grandfathers and fathers today.

By: al

al — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:20:00 +0000

Beautiful. Thank you for writing this.

By: Melissa M.

Melissa M. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:52:49 +0000

Thanks for this lovely post, Marintha; it was perfect for today. It made me reflect on my own grandfathers—I wish I knew more about their lives. This post reminded me of the importance of recording our own lives for our posterity as well as what we know about our ancestors’ lives, so that they won’t forget, either.

By: Tiffany W.

Tiffany W. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:43:17 +0000

Two of my great-uncles went to Wake Island to help build an airbase for the U.S. When the Japanese took the island, both were taken prisoners. One of them lived in POW camps in China and Japan for the duration of the war. He had a remarkably forgiving heart and learned to love the Japanese. The other was kept on the island and then executed with 98 other civilians. Even though neither of them were soldiers, I still honor them on Veterans day.

A couple of years ago, while in Israel, I stumbled upon a war cemetary in Beersheva. The men who were buried there had served in World War I. Most of the soldiers were young and came from Australia and England. It was a very sobering experience. In the years since, I’ve learned more about WWI. One reason we have Veterans Day on November 11th is because WWI ended on November 11, 1918.

By: As Sistas In Zion

As Sistas In Zion — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:01:06 +0000

So beautiful and touching. Thank you for sharing this with us.

By: Jordan

Jordan — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 18:00:09 +0000

Thank you for sharing this—and thank you for remembering when so many seem to want to forget.

But just as a note, we should remember, too, that D-Day by no means ended the war in Europe. The fighting there continued until May 8, 1945, and thousands of soldiers fought and sacrificed their lives during those final 11 months.