A PROPERTY OF THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION FOURTH QUARTER 2020 Nimitz News Dispatch Brought to you in partnership by the Admiral Nimitz Foundation and National Museum of the Pacific War.

Honoring the Past and Embracing the Future ANF Welcomes New With the end of the year comes not only looking back but also planning Board Members and moving forward. Each challenge that the Admiral Nimitz Foundation And says thank you to three men encountered this year was met with the gumption of our forefathers - the drive who have helped mold ANF and the to rise above. As we move into 2021, we are introducing several projects that NMPW into what is it today. directly result from the main challenge delivered by 2020, how to reach a STORY ON PAGE 6 changing world while preserving the past. If you have been to Fredericksburg, Paying Tribute to Pearl Harbor you have seen the Historic Nimitz Hotel (pictured right), standing proud with its “I woke up in a world I wasn’t born “steamboat” façade welcoming you to in.” - Pearl Harbor Survivor Main Street. Just as the outside of the Discover how the NMPW honors building is an icon to visitors worldwide, those who were impacted by the Ballroom just inside its doors has been December 7, 1941. cherished by generations of locals. From STORY ON PAGE 11 weddings and proms to celebrations of life and victory, the Nimitz Ballroom has been and will continue to be intertwined into some of life’s most memorable moments for thousands of people. INSIDE THIS ISSUE: In February of 2020, the newly GENERAL’S ADDRESS 2 renovated Admiral Nimitz Gallery EDUCATION REPORT 4 was opened to the public. With the completion of this project, the KIDS CORNER 8 Foundation turned its attention HEROES ARE STANDING BY: THE PACIFIC MEDALS OF HONOR 10 to the gem housed just a few feet from the gallery’s doors, the Nimitz Ballroom. A review of the Ballroom’s extensive history was completed this past summer and it was decided that the most significant event in the 19th century occurred on October 13, 1945, when Fleet Admiral Nimitz was honored with a gala dinner in the Ballroom (photo above). With pictures from that time and a forensic architect’s investigative help, information has been gathered to accurately return the Ballroom to 1945 grandeur. Preliminary work on the floor We Insprire Our Youth by has revealed the hotel’s original well, now excavated to 15 feet. The Foundation Honoring Our Heroes plans to expand the space to its 1945 dimensions, recreate the intricate wall stenciling, and install a beautiful pine floor which will elate dancing feet for generations to come. (Continued Pg. 9) PacificWarMuseum.org NimitzFoundation.org Admiral Nimitz Foundation FROM THE DESK OF THE PRESIDENT 2020 Board of Directors AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE

Officers ADMIRAL NIMITZ FOUNDATION Case D. Fischer, Chairman Robert B. Phelps, Vice Chairman Dear Members, General Michael W. Hagee, USMC (Ret) President and Chief Executive Officer Like everyone else, we are glad to see 2020 in our Nancy L. Dreher, Secretary Ronald L. Woellhof, Treasurer rearview mirror! We are also hopeful about the latter part of 2021 with the approval of the Covid-19 vaccines. Directors David Q. Bates, Jr. The team here continues to do an outstanding job. Theirs dedication Elizabeth G. Boldrick Kenneth L. Burenga and focus have ensured the Museum remains open with our visitors VADM William D. Crowder, USN (Ret) safe and our virtual educational programs continuing. We have Nancy L. Dreher learned a great deal over the past year that will help us regardless of Andrea Feiler Case D. Fischer what happens in 2021. David D. Fitch John E. Harris We believe the start of 2021 will look a great deal like the last half of Steven L. Highlander 2020. That is, timed Museum admissions with virtual programming. John L. Nau, III However, we have developed event driven options and are ready Bruce Nichols Robert B. Phelps to react as the situation changes in response to increased vaccine Mark A. Roche availability and vaccinations. Greg Shrader CAPT Michael B. Tatsch, USN (Ret) We upgraded our technology in 2020 permitting us to continue to Robert F. Wheless grow our distance learning in 2021. We also started the renovation of Ronald L. Woellhof the Nimitz Ballroom in the Historic Nimitz Hotel. Directors Emeriti Ann Brey Although reduced on-site visitation continues to challenge us John R. Goodwillie financially, your continued strong support has placed us in much Barbara Schmidt Heinen Bruce H.C. Hill better position than many other museums throughout the U.S. Our Steven K. Howell most heartfelt thanks for this dedication and trust. LTG Neal T. (Tom) Jaco, USA (Ret) John Kerr Thank you for your continued support and belief in our mission. I R. Bruce LaBoon CAPT Thomas H. Murray, Jr., USNR (Ret) look forward to seeing you in 2021 and hope you had a joyous and Gordon E. Sauer blessed Holiday Season. John Schrock, Sr. Roy E. Stroeher Best Craig L. Symonds, Ph.D. Mike Hagee Honorary Trustees General Billy J. Boles, USAF (Ret) U.S. Senator John Cornyn U.S. Senator Ted Cruz Thank you for your generosity in support The Honorable Gordon England of the Admiral Nimitz Foundation and the James D. Hornfischer National Museum of the Pacific War! We Ambassador Kay Bailey Hutchison would also like to extend a special thank you Marty Kaderli to the National Endowment for the Humanities Texas Senator Eddie Lucio, Jr. (NEH) who awarded us a grant as part of the Woodrow F. (Woody) McCasland Helen McDonald 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Nancy Brown Negley Security (CARES) Act of 2020. All opinions, John P. Schneider, M.D. findings, conclusions, or recommendations George E. Seay, III expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities. 2 FROM THE DESK OF THE EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF THE ADMIRAL NIMITZ FOUNDATION By Dr. David Shields Mission: Spread Holiday Cheer Was A Success The Education Department has been busy all With the knowledge that the holidays would look quite different December putting the final touches to our spring this year, the Foundation set out on programs. The uncertainty imposed by COVID-19 a mission to bring extra cheer and continues to require flexibility and resourcefulness by all members of the team. smiles to the community and visitors. And yet, in the midst of these challenges innovation and new ideas seem easier Weekends from December 4 to than before. At any rate, we are pleased knowing during 2020 that nearly 50,000 January 3, the Memorial Courtyard was adorned with lights and sounds people have viewed 200 digital museum programs via a multitude of social of the season. We estimate that over media platforms. This number also includes many thousands of students who 1,400 people took a stroll through the have beamed into our livestreaming TEKS and state-based curriculum lessons lit courtyard, and Santa even made from around the state the nation and the world. a few appearances! Books and board games were also gathered for Ft. Hood Our Museum Outreach Coordinator, Bryan Degner, elaborates on our Santa’s Workshop, a non-profit which Education digital programs: provides gifts to over 3,000 children of Active-duty Army families. Mark your Transformational is a great word to describe the impact that 2020 had calendar to come visit in 2021! on education outreach at the NMPW. This year forced education outreach out of its comfort zone due to the pandemic. We had to adjust quickly from sharing history face to face to a virtual experience. The forecast for 2021 for education outreach looks bright with the hope of onsite field trips returning and expanding digital programing. The one thing education outreach can’t do is to become complacent in 2021. Existing lessons will need to be examined and new programs created in order to share WWII history in the Pacific across the nation and around the world. Jeff Copsetta heads up our Living History Program and is senior leader in Have you enjoyed reading our digital programs. He provides the following plans for 2021: Reflections From Japan? For 2021 look for Living History at the Pacific Combat Zone like you’ve never David Krigbaum is a sailor and travel writer based in Okinawa, Japan. He’s seen it before! With some new artifacts in the Education Outreach Collection studied World War II since he was a as well as some much needed maintenance performed on our vehicles, we child but developed specific interests are looking ahead to continue to bring history to life with new programs and in the Battle of Bataan and the early activities for the entire family. days of the Pacific War after visiting Our successful Nimitz Minitz series will undergo a bit of rebranding with a Bataan and Corregidor in 2010. Since moving to Japan in 2015, he has been fresh new look and target audience. These new programs will feature a wide traveling the country from Hokkaido variety of topics from “This Day in Pacific War History” to women’s roles, to Okinawa visiting historic places, one minute with an artifact, and many other educational topics covered in 60 including WWII-related ruins and seconds. These may also serve as a companion piece to some of our Distance museums, and writing about the Learning programs. experiences on his history and travel website, Wayfarer Daves. He thanks We will continue our efforts to maintain relevancy with our social media his wife Emi for her love and support audiences by offering varied Facebook Live programs. This video series will which has made much of his writing offer a way to take some of our Nimitz Minitz topics to the next level and give possible. our audience a sort of private tour of some of the places on site that are not

4 Nimitz News Dispatch typically open to the public. These will also be a varied series from STEAM related topics like weather or soils and vegetation in the Pacific to vehicles, weapons, and gear used during the Pacific War that still may hold relevancy today. And last but not least, from the desk of our new Museum Programs Coordinator, Jaclyn Mertz: We will continue to provide a number of webinars for our more mature audience this upcoming year so make sure to check our website for updates. On February 19th, we will broadcast our Day of Remembrance video recognizing the signing of Executive Order 9066, which authorized the incarceration of people of Japanese ancestry into United States concentration camps during World War II. Don’t forget to stop by the Nimitz Gallery on February 24th to celebrate Admiral Nimitz 136th birthday with a surprise gift! Limited quantity available. You can find information about upcoming programs in the monthly member e-newsletter, by following us on social media, and on the events page on our website, Education Department www.pacificwarmuseum.org. Welcomes New Team Member Jaclyn Mertz is the new Museum Programs Coordinator at the National Museum of the Pacific The Man Behind the Camera War, where she develops and manages all public programs. Carlos Javier Sanchez is the Foundation’s Originally from Maryland, she Digital Production Manager in charge of has worked as an AmeriCorps creating video and photography content Member at the Fairbanks Museum across all departments. He hit the ground and Planetarium in St. Johnsbury, running when he joined the team this past Vermont, and recently was the Education Coordinator at The summer, and not only is Carlos new, but Leonardo Museum in Salt Lake City, his position is as well. The position of Utah. She brings with her six years Digital Production Manager was created in of experience in the museum field order to meet the high demand for digital and a B.S. in Environmental Science and Ecology from the University of programming created by the challenges of Maryland-College Park. 2020. In his first few months with us, he has Jaclyn is an avid bookworm, made a tremendous impact on the number and quality of videos the Museum enjoys hiking, loves cats, and has has been able to produce. His work can be found on our YouTube, Facebook, and settled in well to her new position. Instagram channels, and will appear on our new website being released in 2021. In just a few short weeks, Jaclyn has been involved with several Carlos is an award-winning photojournalist, commercial, editorial, and digital projects including the advertising content creator known for his stylized environmental portraits and Veteran’s Day and Pearl Harbor balancing his artistic vision with a solid knowledge of the craft. Day Commemorative Programs, and Holiday On The Homefront: A “I am very excited and honored to be able to share the museum’s mission and Month of Lights and Holiday Cheer. humanity via storytelling not only with our members but the public at large.” Please join us in welcoming said Sanchez. Jaclyn and keep an eye out for the Born and raised in Carolina, Puerto Rico, Carlos earned his undergraduate new and exciting programs she has degree from The Evergreen State College and a Masters of Communication in planned. Digital Media from the University of Washington. His work appears regularly in magazines, newspapers, and online publications across the globe, and we are proud to have him on our team.

We Inspire Our Youth by Honoring Our Heroes 5 2021 UPCOMING EVENTS ADMIRAL NIMITZ FOUNDATION WELCOMES THREE JANUARY - MARCH NEW BOARD MEMBERS

JANUARY Webinar TBD FEBRUARY 19 - Admiral Chester Nimitz Birthday 24 - Day of Remembrance MARCH Full STEAM Ahead for Spring Break

Visit our website for more information www.pacificwarmuseum.org As we welcome a new year, we also welcome three new Admiral Nimitz Foundation board members. DID YOU KNOW? US Navy Captain Sam Howard (Ret.), above left, is a native of New Jersey. Commissioned in 1984 through the NROTC Scholarship program at The Fredericksburg’s original Nimitz Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina, CAPT Howard began his career Hotel was built on Main Street in in Surface Warfare in the destroyer USS O’BANNON (DD 987). His career the early 1850s and was acquired assignments are extensive, including service aboard the USS RAVEN, USS ASHLAND, USS BATAAN, and notably, he served as the Junior Officer of by Charles H. Nimitz, Admiral the Deck on the USS CONSTITUTION when she sailed unaided for the first Nimitz’s grandfather, in 1855. Under time in 116 years. His shore assignments ranged from Assistant Plans and his guidance, what began with four Operations Officer and Port Services Officer, Naval Education and Training Center Newport, Rhode Island (now Naval Station Newport) to the U.S. Marine rooms and a large central fireplace Corps Amphibious Capabilities Working Group convened by the Assistant would grow to fifty rooms and boast a Commandant of the Marine Corps. He reported to Tactical Training Group Atlantic as Executive Officer in March 2012, took command in July 2013, and brewery, saloon, and general store. It relinquished command in May 2014. He was transferred to the retired list on would come to be known for comfort 1 July 2014. and convenience. It also had a rose CAPT Howard has a B.A. in Psychology from The Citadel, an M.S. in garden, vegetable garden, grape Management from the Naval Postgraduate School, and an M.A. in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College. He presently trains arbor, and stagecoach stop in the shipboard watchstanders in the mariner art and science as an instructor for back protected by a high stone wall. the Navy Surface Warfare Officer School Command’s Mariner Skills Training The hotel would change ownership Center. He and his wife, Lari Ann Roberts of Hainesport, New Jersey, reside in Virginia Beach, VA, and have a son attending The Citadel. and undergo renovations, finally US Navy Rear Admiral Sam Perez (Ret.), center above, is the Chief Executive closing in the fall of 1963. It was Officer for Ocean Infinity America. He retired from active duty in August sold to the nonprofit Fleet Admiral 2016. Before retiring from military service, he served as the U.S. Navy’s 65th Chester W. Nimitz Naval Museum President of the Board of Inspection and Survey. RADM Perez led a team of experts who assessed the fleet’s material readiness. Before his tour at the Board on September 22, 1964, and would of Inspection and Survey, RADM Perez served as Deputy Assistant Secretary reopen on February 24, 1967, as the for Plans, Policy, and Operations in the Bureau of Military Affairs at the State Department. Admiral Nimitz Museum. The hotel During his tenure as Deputy Assistant Secretary, RADM Perez provided is now part of the NMPW grounds.

6 Nimitz News Dispatch executive leadership and guidance in 1974. During his nearly 40-year in strategic business development. for U.S. government global security career, he served in a wide range of He and his wife of 48 years, the former assistance programs and policies, logistics, supply chain, infrastructure, Bobbie Woods, live in New Market, a such as Foreign Military Financing and leadership positions including suburb of Huntsville, Alabama. and the Global Peace Operations as the Chief of the Marine Corps As we welcome new board members, Initiative, and led the Department of Staff, Headquarters Marine Corps, we offer our deep appreciation to the State’s global conventional weapons Washington, DC; as a principal assistant three board members who retired at destruction efforts. RADM Perez served and adviser to the Commandant and the end of 2020; David Q. Bates, Jr., multiple command and staff tours the Assistant Commandant of the who joined the board in 1993, Kenneth in the Department of Defense and Marine Corps; commanded the Marine Burenga, who joined in 1993, and held four commands at sea, including Corps’ only operational and strategic Ronald Woellhof, who joined in 1981. command of Carrier Strike Group One level logistics organization and supply They have served and supported the (CSG 1). RADM Perez also commanded chain, and was the Assistant Deputy Admiral Nimitz Foundation for over Joint Task Force Port Opening, the Commandant for Installations and two decades, each with dedication effort to reconstruct and open Port Au Logistics (Facilities). and passion, and the Foundation Prince port following the 2010 Haiti LtGen Williams earned an M.B.A. from would not be where it is today without earthquake. National University, San Diego; an M.S. them. Their steadfast and unwavering RADM Perez is a graduate of the in Strategic Resources Management, support for our mission guided us United States Naval Academy and Industrial College of the Armed through several major changes and holds an M.S. in Strategic Planning Forces, National Defense University; projects, such as the transference from the Naval Postgraduate School. and a B.A. (Cum Laude) in Business of the Foundation from Texas Parks He was a Federal Executive Fellow at Administration/Minor in Accounting and Wildlife to Texas Historical MIT and was a Senior Navy Fellow at from Stillman College, Tuscaloosa, AL. Commission, the creation and the Strategic Studies Group. LtGen Williams is also the recipient of dedication of the George H.W. Bush In addition, we welcome Lt. General an Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy Gallery and Pacific Combat Zone, Willie Williams (Ret.), third photo on from Albany State University and an renovations of the Admiral Nimitz the left, who commanded and served Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Gallery and Old Nimitz Hotel, and at every level to support our nation’s Stillman College. through the global pandemic we are tactical, operational, and strategic After retiring from the Marine currently experiencing. objectives. Corps in 2013, he founded WWilliams Thank you, again, to those who close A native of Alabama, LtGen Williams Consulting, LLC based in Huntsville, a chapter and we welcome those who was commissioned as an officer in the AL to assist Department of Defense- begin a new one. We look forward to Marine Corps after earning his B.A. supporting contractors and industries 2021 and new beginnings.

YOUR GIFT LEAVES A LASTING LEGACY

Make one of your 2021 resolutions Planned Giving. Please consider the Admiral Nimitz Foundation and the National Museum of the Pacific War for that portion of your IRA or 401K. Perhaps you want to designate us as part of your Donor Advised Funds. Whatever option, planning for the future can help fulfill your personal and family charitable goals. Please contact Steve Lutz, Development Director, at (830) 997-8600 ext. 204 or [email protected], to become a member of the Admiral Nimitz Legacy Society today!

We Inspire Our Youth by Honoring Our Heroes 7 TRY YOUR HAND AT A WWII RATION RECIPE KIDS CORNER: Sweet Potato Victory Cake Light on both sugar and butter, this Rationing, Growing easy one-bowl cake was a perfect Your Own, and Making solution to the problem of providing a It Count sweet dessert during World War II. It could be assembled quickly by a busy home-front cook, and chances are the sweet potatoes came from a backyard During World War II, you couldn’t just walk into a grocery store and buy as Victory Garden. Go ahead and give it a much as you wanted. Just like in today’s time with toilet paper, hand sanitizer, try. For a chance to be featured on our and some other things at the grocery store, certain things were rationed. That social media, take a picture, post it, and meant that you were only allowed to buy a small amount. The government tag us! introduced rationing because it was the only way to make sure everyone got their share when items were in short supply. Each family received a ration Ingredients: book which contained stamps good for certain rationed items. Once a person’s • 1 cup mashed sweet potatoes, warm stamps were used up for the month, they couldn’t buy anymore. Families were • 2/3 cup sugar also encouraged to “make do and mend” their clothes since buying new clothes • ¼ cup vegetable shortening or was rationed too! Fabric, buttons, and zippers were needed for uniforms and softened butter (or a mixture) the war effort, so people would take extra care of their clothes and recycle their • 3 tablespoons lemon juice “old” tops and bottoms into new stylish outfits. • 1 teaspoon cinnamon • ½ teaspoon salt • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg Victory Gardens were one way that families on the home • 2 large eggs front were able to get fresh produce like beets, carrots, • 1 ½ cups unsifted all-purpose flour tomatoes, and more. 20 million victory gardens were planted • 2 teaspoons baking powder during 1942-1945 and an estimate of 9-10 million tons of • Confectioners’ sugar vegetables were harvested in those homes and community You will need: 9-inch square baking plots. These victory gardens helped by boosting morale, pan, 1 large bowl, electric mixer safeguarding against food storages, and easing the burden on commercial farmers working to feed troops and civilians Instructions: Preheat oven to 350*F. overseas. Grease and flour a 9-inch square baking pan. Beat the sweet potatoes, sugar, shortening, lemon juice, Points to Ponder cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg in a large bowl with an electric mixer u Is there anything you have had to ration during the pandemic this past on high speed until fluffy. Add the year? How did that make you feel and how did you adjust to using less? eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sprinkle the flour and ______baking powder over the mixture and ______beat on low speed, scraping side of ______bowl occasionally, just until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared u If you had to choose an item to ration, what item would it be and why? pan and bake 30 to 35 minutes or until the center springs back when ______light pressed. Cool cake in pan at ______least 5 minutes before cutting into ______9 squares. Serve warm sprinkled with confectioners’ sugar. Store any u What do you think happened to Victory Gardens after the war ended? Did leftovers in the refrigerator. families keep gardening or do you think they stopped? Why?

Citation: “Sweet Potato Victory Cake”. ______GRANDMA’S WARTIME KITCHEN: World ______War II and the Way We Cooked, by Joanne Lamb Hayes, ECHO POINT Books & Media, ______2019, pp.21. 8 Nimitz News Dispatch Honoring the Past and Embracing the Future (Cont. Pg. 1) With the preservation of the Ballroom and combining a temporary exhibit area and a portion of the memories comes the challenge to connect current present Museum Store. The rendering at the bottom illustrates and future generations to a past they move further the elements of the new gallery space. away from daily. Though the pandemic and Imagine, if you will, a student entering the Museum and subsequent safety measures have significantly selecting the path of a person who served in WWII. Through impacted visitation to the Museum, as you will see the planned “WWII Passport” system, they can engage with on the back of this newsletter in the 2020 Review, a virtual representation of their individual on their personal the Foundation has worked diligently to ensure device. They will learn from first-person experiences what our mission did not waver. We continued our life was like on the home-front, the feelings associated with critical mission of educating and inspiring today’s enlisting in the military, and more as they relate to someone generations by digitally telling how the Greatest like them. As they follow the story, they can “curate” oral Generation responded to crisis during WWII. histories and digital artifacts on their personal device for their Our goal is to help visitors understand that most, if own private exhibits. The ability to “take history home,” will not all, of the issues today have been faced in the past keep the lessons fresh and allow them to interact with the by people just like them. We also plan to redesign Museum long after leaving. the George Bush Gallery exhibits to provide a more When Admiral Nimitz was appointed to Commander-in- comprehensive narrative of the war by adding stories Chief Pacific, he was quoted as saying, “I have just taken on from groups that have not been told and illustrate a great responsibility and I will do my utmost to meet it.” a more accurate picture. These stories come from Though the circumstances are vastly different, we strive to diverse backgrounds, including minorities and do our utmost to carry on the legacy of “America’s Greatest people with disabilities serving overseas and working Generation.” We do this in the daily goings-on of the on the Homefront. Our collection now includes Foundation and museum, the renovation projects, the new voices of indigenous populations of Pacific islanders, undertakings, and by being relevant to a digital world. and Japanese soldiers and citizens, all of which are important to education and understanding of WWII in the Pacific. As any parent will tell you, education and entertainment are not mutually exclusive. Being entertained is about connection – to the moment, to the content, to the experience. Since artifacts cannot tell the story, we must build stories around them. To meet this challenge, 2021 will bring about plans for construction of a Children’s Gallery. This new space, filled with interactives, will be built within the Bush Gallery by repurposing and

We Inspire Our Youth by Honoring Our Heroes 9 Heroes are Standing By: The Pacific Medals of Honor A Sacred Trust: Hospital Apprentice First Class Fred F. Lester, USNR By Kent Knudson

Following the Battle for Iwo cover. Too weakened by his injuries Jima, Admiral Chester Nimitz’s to administer aid, HA1c Lester Central Pacific forces were directed directed two other platoon members to prepare for operations against in providing treatment to the Marine. Okinawa in the Ryukyu Islands. Adamantly refusing medical treatment D-Day for Operation ICEBERG for himself, he collected his strength would be for 1 April 1945 with the to calmly and expertly direct his fellow purpose of securing and developing comrades in the treatment of two naval and air bases for the proposed additional wounded Marines. Before landings on the Japanese home succumbing to his wounds, he had islands: Operation DOWNFALL. saved one Marine and contributed to The 22nd Marine Regiment, the care and safety of others. Lester was then transferred to the Fleet 6th Marine Division would land HA1c Lester is buried at Clarendon Marine Force at Camp Elliot in San on the left flank of the joint Army- Hills Cemetery, Westmont, IL. The Diego. After combat field training, he Marine Corps landing force on destroyer escort USS Lester (DE-1022) was transferred to the Pacific Theater Okinawa’s southwest coast and which served in the fleet from 1957- and promoted to Hospital Apprentice pivot northward to secure the 1973 and Camp Lester, former site of First Class. northern part of the island. That the U.S. Naval Hospital in Okinawa, task completed, the unit would On 8 June 1945, 1st Battalion, were named in his memory. 22nd Marines had relentlessly attacked pivot again southward to join the Throughout World War II, an a strategic Japanese hill position in fight against the high concentration irreplaceable camaraderie existed a fierce battle that resulted in many of Japanese fortifications located between Marines and Navy corpsmen. casualties. Nineteen-year-old HA1c in the southern one-third of the This trust and respect for these Lester was assigned as a hospital 60-mile-long island. dedicated sailors and their life-saving corpsman to one of the unit’s assault Hospital Apprentice First skills set a standard throughout the war rifle platoons and quickly noticed a Class Fred Faulkner Lester was born and continues today. Major General wounded Marine beyond the front on 29 April 1926 in Downers Grove, Lemuel C. Shepherd, Commanding lines, lying in an open field. Leaving his IL, one of six children in the family General, 6th Marine Division, would concealed position, “Doc” Lester began of Frederick William and Minnie define the hospital corpsmen who to crawl towards the Marine. Facing Viola Lester. He enlisted at age served at the Battle for Okinawa as and disregarding an increasing barrage 17 in the U.S. Naval Reserve as an “the finest, most courageous men that of enemy fire directed towards him, he Apprentice Seaman in November I know.... they did a magnificent job.” was hit by rifle fire and wounded as he 1943. He traveled to Naval Training inched toward the casualty. Ignoring the The end of Japanese resistance Station, Farragut, ID, for boot camp pain, he was nearly finished bringing to the American “typhoon of steel” on and was promoted to Seaman the Marine back to safety when he was Okinawa would be announced on 21 Second Class in January 1944. wounded a second time. Lester knew June 1945. Nearly forty-three months After his graduation from Hospital that these wounds would be fatal. after Pearl Harbor, American forces Corps School at San Diego, CA, on were on Japan’s threshold. 3 Mar 1944, he became a Hospital Exhausted, the focused corpsman Apprentice Second Class. HA2c succeeded in pulling the Marine to

10 Nimitz News Dispatch HONORING THEIR SACRIFICE By Stephanie Hagee, Tributes Director

Sorrow, terror, brotherhood, recovery, relief…all words which are invoked when the topic of Pearl Harbor day comes up. Those of us who never lived through it cannot fathom what it was like to be there on that fateful day of December 7, 1941. The reality of that day is filled with the dark statistics of 2,403 dead and over 1,000 more wounded. Still, another thing also became evident – the amazing resilience, courage, and patriotism of everyday men and women throughout our country. American pride shown-through like it never had in the past. It was this determination that enabled us to defeat the enemy after four long years.

We cannot begin to repay the families of those who lost loved ones or those that survived with the memories etched into their brain, but we can honor them. Thousands of plaques and bricks are displayed at our museum and tell the stories of some of the amazing men and women who gave up their lives or a part of their youth during World War II. Whether someone joined in 1942 or 1944, all of these personal accounts were a direct result of that historic day in December of 1941. Therefore, the National Museum of the Pacific War is proud to unveil a new section of our Tribute walls solely dedicated to veterans of Pearl Harbor. You can listen to first-person accounts of that fateful day by visiting our website, www.pacificwarmuseum.org, and selecting Resources > Oral History Project. You can also view the 2020 National Museum of The Pacific War Pearl Harbor Virtual Program and wall dedication on the Museum’s YouTube channel.

Folds of Honor Unwavering Generosity

We invite you to participate in our new flag honor program, Folds of Honor. You can have a flag flown at the National Museum of the Pacific War in admiration of your loved one. Your special donation covers the cost of a flag that will be flown with pride for one day in the Presidential Plaza of the museum (actual flag pictured right). Each flag includes a personalized Certificate of Flag Presentation. For more information about Folds of Honor, plaques, bricks, and other ways to pay respect to your Veteran, please contact Stephanie Hagee, Director of Tributes at [email protected].

We Inspire Our Youth by Honoring Our Heroes 11 Nimitz News Dispatch

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40,000+ digital program Safely reopened the Museum Released 8 webinars views on 60 programs from 25-500 people per day

First International Created 140 Distance Learning Veteran’s Day 2020 Program Education Program: Ghana Programs Reaching 8,500+ 41 Schools, 4,520 Students Students