Freedom’s Voice The Monthly Newsletter of the Military History Center 112 N. Main ST Broken Arrow, OK 74012 http://www.okmhc.org/ “Promoting Patriotism through the Preservation of Military History” Volume 7, Number 5 May 2020 Memorial Day United States Armed Services Days of Observance May has three significant Armed Services Days of Ob- servance. The most important is Memorial Day on May 25. Others are VE Day on May 8, Armed Forces Day on May 16 and National Maritime Day (Merchant Marine) on May 22. Flag Day – June 13 Flag Day, June 14, falls on Sunday this year, so the MHC will hold its annual Flag Day event on Saturday, June 13. The event will begin at 11:00 a.m. on MHC’s Memorial Flag Pla- za. We will send out a notice when the details are finalized. “Here rests in honored glory an American soldier In the meantime, please mark your calendars and plan to known but to God.” attend this patriotic event. “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks. May Memorial Day originated as Decoration Day in 1868, when we never forget freedom isn't free." Major General John A. Logan, Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of Union Veter- – President Franklin D. Roosevelt ans of the Civil War, established a day for the nation to deco- rate the graves of its war dead with flowers. The preferred name for the holiday gradually changed from "Decoration Day" to "Memorial Day", which was first used in 1882. It did not become more common until after World War II and was not declared the official name by Federal law until 1967. On June 28, 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Mon- day Holiday Act, which moved Memorial Day from its tradi- tional May 30 date to the last Monday in May, beginning in 1971. Memorial Day Banners The Memorial Day banners, sponsored by the Military His- tory Center and Blue Star Mothers of America, have been in- stalled on Broken Arrow’s Main Street. The roses are in full bloom and are gorgeous, and several eateries are open. Any- one tired of being inside might consider walking Main Street during Memorial Day weekend, or the first good weather day, to view the banners. The banner shown below is a random example. U.S. Navy F-18 Super Hornet Robert Earl Brooks – USMC Robert Earl Brooks was born at Oklahoma City on April 22, 1925. He was working at the YMCA, when he registered for the draft on April 22, 1943. Upon induction, Brooks was assigned to the Marine Corps, and after training, to the 5th Marine Divi- sion. The 5th Division’s only World War II battle was Iwo Jima, This is a cartoon created by Nick Aston, a friend and supporter of the where Brooks served as a communications sergeant. MHC. He has contacted a company that produces T-shirts for charities After returning home, Brooks enrolled at Oklahoma Baptist that will produce T-shirts bearing the cartoon. A portion of the pro- University at Shawnee. While there, he met his future wife, ceeds will be donated to Meals on Wheels. Mr. Ashton is dedicating the project to the memory to his late wife and best friend, both of Nancye Faye Willis. They married on November 3, 1950, in Ok- whom recently passed away – not connected to Covid-19. lahoma City. Brooks continued his education at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary at Fort Worth. After graduation, he was ordained a minister and served in Youth, Music and Education in churches throughout Texas and Oklahoma. Museum Hours and Admission Fee After Robert’s retirement in 2000, he and Nancye located in Broken Arrow to be near their daughters and grandchildren. Tuesday – Thursday: 10:00 – 4:00 They joined the First Baptist Church of Broken Arrow, where Closed Friday thru Monday and major Federal holidays Robert volunteered in many areas of ministry. SGT Robert Earl Brooks, USMC, passed away on February 2, Adults – $5.00 2018. Nancye had predeceased him in 2009. He is laid to rest Members and Children under 18 – Free. with Nancye in Floral Haven Memorial Gardens in Broken Ar- For more information, call (918) 794-2712. row. Oklahoma Merchant Mariner Oklahoma World War II MIA Comes Home James Albert “Jim” Coley PVT Ballard McCurley – 1944 James Albert Coley was born at Meadville, Mississippi, on Ballard McCurley was born at Pauls Valley (Garvin County), July 16, 1922. He registered for the draft at Natchez, Mississip- Oklahoma, on November 10, 1910. In 1940, he was living in pi, on June 30, 1942, at age nineteen. He was rejected by the Whitehead in Garvin County. Sometime after that, by 1943, he Army because of poor vision. The Merchant Marine accepted moved to Santa Clara, California, probably to find better work. Coley in 1943. He began his service as a mess mate and worked After being drafted, he was inducted into the Army at San his way up to cook and baker. Francisco on February 25, 1944. His first ship was an oil tanker bound for Great Britain. It After training as an infantryman, McCurley was deployed to was also carrying P-47 Thunderbolts. His second ship was an oil Europe as a replacement. He was assigned to Co. M, 3rd BN, tanker that passed through the Panama Canal and operated off 12th Infantry RGT, 4th Infantry Division. We don’t know if he the west coast of South America for ten months. Coley’s last was with the 4th ID, when it landed on Utah Beach on D-Day, ship was a cargo vessel headed for the southwest Pacific. It was June 6. On November 29, 1944, the division was in the Hürtgen carrying ammunition and TNT to the Philippines. His ship was Forest in the German Rhineland. On that day, McCurley’s bat- one of the first to enter Manila Bay in February 1945, while the talion was in a reserve position in the woods west of the town Battle of Manila was in progress. Coley was still in Manila when of Hürtgen. He and other soldiers in his unit were ordered to the war ended. He arrived back in the United States in October clear a field of tree stumps so vehicles could drop off rations 1945. and supplies. According to witnesses, McCurley inadvertently After the war, Coley settled in Louisiana, where he worked set-off a German anti-personnel mine and was killed instantly. for drilling operators including twenty-one years with Chevron His remains were not immediately removed. By the time on off-shore platforms. He relocated to Tulsa in 1981, where Graves Registration located them in 1948, no identifying infor- he worked as a field superintendent for Sterling Oil Co. mation remained. James Albert “Jim” Coley died at Bixby, Oklahoma, on May McCurley’s remains were buried in Ardennes American 2, 2019, at age ninety-six. He is buried in Fort Gibson National Cemetery in France as Unknown X-7359. His name is recorded Cemetery. on the Tablets of the Missing at Henri-Chapelle American Cem- etery in Belgium. A rosette will be placed next to his name in- dicating recovery. PVT Ballard McCurley will be laid to rest in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Pauls Valley, where his family earlier placed a memorial marker for him. Crest of the 12th Infantry Regiment Ducti Amore Patriae "Having Been Led by Love of Country" Flag of the United States Merchant Marine Seventy-five Years Ago, This Month An Inspirational Life The 11th Armored Division of Third Army liberated the notorious Maut- CPL Tibor Rubin – 1953 hausen (Austria) slave labor camp on May 6. One of the liberated prisoners was Simon Wiesenthal, who, dedicated his life to hunting Tibor Rubin’s story is one of the human spirit at its best and Nazi war criminals after the war. Another liberated prisoner was a one worth noting. He was born in Pásztó, Hungary, on June 18, fourteen-year-old Hungarian Jewish boy named Tibor Rubin. 1929. In the spring of 1944, when the Germans began round- ing up Hungarian Jews for deportation to Birkenau for extermi- nation, his and the other 119 Jewish families of his town were among them. Upon arrival at Birkenau, Rubin was selected for labor rather than the gas chamber. He was sent to Mau- thausen, arguably the worst of the German slave labor camps. Upon his liberation, Rubin committed himself to going to America and joining the United States Army in repayment for his liberation. He fulfilled his commitment, and during the Ko- rean War, he served with Co. I, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. On October 30, 1950, 8th Cavalry was the tip of the spear of the 1st Cavalry Division while in position just north of the village of Unsan, about forty miles or so north of Pyong- yang. On that day, Rubin distinguished himself by holding off several Chinese attacks with a .30 caliber machinegun. He was severely wounded and captured by the Chinese, who offered to repatriate him to his native Hungary. Rubin refused to forsake his new country and remained a prisoner of war. His case was among several reviewed in the 1990s for con- sideration for the Medal of Honor. The review determined that “Corporal Rubin’s gallant actions in close contact with the en- emy and his unyielding courage and bravery while a prisoner of war are in the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Army.” Presi- dent George W.