Kawi2strokes.com Forum

http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries ... story.html
respect to him: Joe Langdell

One of the last. There are eight survivors left.

I had seen a piece on him earlier, elsewhere.
My Dad would have been 91 Sunday and was a proud veteran of both the Atlantic and Pacific campaigns, on the USS Satterlee, a destroyer.
He bombed the beaches of Japanese islands and his ship was the only one to show up to shell the Germans at Pointe Du Hoc’ on D-Day in Normandy.
Their shells backed the machine guns and cannons off long enough for the Rangers to scale the cliffs.
He passed 4+ years ago, but I can recall the look of pride in his eyes when he talked about his service days.

Truly they were....

"The Greatest Generation"

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Bad decisions make the best stories.

I think that artical means Navy Lt. Cmdr. Joe Langdell, is the last survivor of the USS Arizona? I would think there are still some Pearl Harbor survivors left Sad we are loosing the WWII Vets , Many of us on this site are the sons and families of these guys, My Dad Infantry WWII served same time as his Dad (my Grandfather) in WWII , Grandfather also served WWI trenches of France he was PTSD way before PTSD was recognized or treated, drove on thru life never flinched but for ever wounded emotionally.

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1975 S3 project bike
1974 H1 project bike
1972 Yamaha R5
1974 Yamaha RD350

Today I had to take my pops ( ww2 ,Korea & Nam ) to Sutter cardiac & vascular surgery center I'm Sacramento and saw another ww2 vet w/ a pearl harbor survivor hat on! Pretty rare day w/2 WWII survivors on one bldg.!!!! @ the Mather airshow last fall pops was the only WWII vet that I saw!!!

One of my relatives is still on board the Arizona, Harold Joseph Ray, worked in ship's stores.

read to fast (with the help of the History WWII belgium forum on which am member)
one of the last survivor -but not the last-of one of the most famous battleship of the US Navy:USS Arizona

We need to remember there sacrifice , my parents were in Darwin (AUS) when the Japs bombed it bigger then Pearl , and Townsville QLD (AUS) same thing , It was all keep a secret so the population didnt panic ,they both showed Post trauma syndrome , I didnt realize until later in my life what they had been throught , thanks Mum and Dad , love you , and all that served to give us a safe world ,

III's dad would have been 91, which makes his birth year relatively 1925 or so. He'd have been some place near 19 to 21 when Pearl was bombed, a young man that had to grow into being a soldier and defender in quite a hurry.

I remember a MASH episode years ago, Henry Blake was consoling Hawkeye on the loss of Hawkeye's friend, and it has never been so true, "Young men fight old men's wars". Those young men from all the Allied nations, did nothing less than save the entire world. The other saying still applies, but was as prevalent then as it is now, "Uncommon Valor was a Common Virtue".

Just 2 years ago here, we lost 101-1/2 year old Lowell Hussey. He had lost a leg in WWII, but was as sharp as ever. He lost that leg from gangrene, from injuries incurred at the Battle of the Bulge. There are still two living WWII veterans here, and I speak with them almost every day. I consider them to be extremely special, and to me, they are living history....THEY WERE THERE.

My Dad is 91 1/2 and served in the South Pacific during the war. A few times I have gently prodded him about talking about the war but he only ever mentioned one event. He was working in the motor pool on one of the South pacific islands. He was ordered to siphon gas from all available vehicles in order to move the fuel to the next island they were attacking. His platoon was shipping out that afternoon. Because they didn't have enough manual pumps for siphoning many of the guys were using their mouths for suction. He accidentally ingested some gasoline and went to the hospital. Everyone but him in his platoon shipped out for the attack. Not one man survived from his platoon. He has felt remorse/guilt ever since. It's a burden I would never want to carry.

My great uncle John Frank was a Major General in the army. http://1-22infantry.org/commanders/rugglespers.htm

I have his 1-star General riding crop as a memento.