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I was at the VA hospital yesterday. Two WWII Vets were talking. One asked the other if he knew someone from his home town. The reply was that he had died. The one old vet said, “my wife just died” …the other said, “my wife died last Thanksgiving”. They didn’t say anymore. I stood there thinking of my dad who was a WWII Vet…he died last month. I got a call this morning and my uncle, a WWII Vet died this morning.

This Memorial Day will be the last chance we have to thank many of the WWII Vets still living.

it is however a wonderful thing how in recent years recognition of world war II veterans has grown mightily. i think Saving Private Ryan played a large part in that. People are realizing that The Greatest Generation will be gone, very very soon.



Pete Theodoropoulos, 1923-2003, WWII veteran, england, france, belgium, germany, checkoslovakia. Battle of the Bulge. Two Purple Hearts, Bronze Star.



Stelios Theodoropoulos, 1925-1944, WWII, Died first night of Battle of the Bulge.



George Theodoropoulos, 1921- , WWII veteran, Pacific Theatre.

Donald Lyle DeCamp 1921- , WWII vet also. Thanks Gramps, and thanks to ALL our veterans.

Paul, thanks to a large chunk of your family as well! :yh_flag :yh_flag

Congrats Clint and Paul for this posting. Those who fought in both WW1/2 should never ever be forgotten.



www.poppy.org.uk

lc posted in another topic about memorial day, and reminded that memorial day is to honor our war dead, not veterans per se. that of course doesn't mean by any stretch that one should not thank our veterans for their sacrifices every day of the year.



my uncle stelios, who died 15 years before i was born, was a heavy-machine-gunner - large machine guns, usually set up in a 'nest', too heavy for one man to carry. the specific details of how he died are (were) known only to germans who killed him. back in those days, 'hearing protection' was never considered. the consensus is that his position was flanked, and while he was shooting off into the darkness, he was shot in the back at close range by the enemy who had come around him. he was 19 years old.



http://peter.theodoropoulos.org/stan.html



my grandparents learned that he was missing in action in december 1944. they spent an agonizing two months with no news, until the telegram shown on the page above arrived. i don't know if they ever fully recovered from the loss. my father, who learned after the war that he was only about 35 miles away from Stan when he died, never really recovered either. He adored his kid brother. I can count on one hand the number of times my dad ever spoke about Stan. the emotion was just too overwhelming for him, even fifty years later.

I totally agree . I consider myself lucky that my dad, a WWII veteran aged 81, is still alive

bless the greatest generation. ~~~~~~~~~~........In Flanders Fields



In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.







We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

john8pies wrote: I totally agree . I consider myself lucky that my dad, a WWII veteran aged 81, is still alive
when i was growing up, world war II was just something that there were a lot of movies and some TV shows about. there was no doubt it happened, but it was just...one of the many things out there in history. i knew, only by a few comments sometimes, that my dad had been in world war II. i knew he was greatly affected by the combat, and having men - friends - next to him die in combat was something he was never able to speak about until the alzheimers began to 'separate' him from his locked-up memories.



in 1998, "Saving Private Ryan" came out, and the fact is, it was the first time it ever really sunk in for me what my dad had been through. he wasn't at normandy, but he saw a tremendous amount of combat, and was extremely lucky to have lived through it - only nine men from his company of 100 returned from the war. i was overwhelmed by that movie.



after i saw 'SPR', when i next saw my dad, i thanked him for his sacrifices in the war - something i don't think anyone had ever done for him. he didn't say a word, and he didn't have to.



Thank your father for me as well, john8pies.

What a grand idea to list those we know who faught in wars of past and present as an honoraray thread

Curtis Miller WWII died 2001 Age unknown

TJ Stirling Afghanastan, dam lucky to be alive today, home on leave.

Robert Harold Bryce 1926 -



Pacific Theater, United States Marine Corps

My grandmother had to sign papers for him to get in since he was

underage.



While helping my dad clean out all of his stuff prior to his move, we came

across his Marine Corps field jacket, and a set of leggings, both of which

he let me keep, to treasure.



Paul's dad also had I think 3 or 4 oak leaf clusters with his bronze star.



Bronze and Silver oak leaf clusters





An Oak leaf cluster is a common device which is placed on military awards and decorations to denote those who have received more than one bestowal of a particular decoration. The number of oak leaf clusters typically indicates the second and subsequent award of the decoration.



My very humble thanks to all veterans, current and former.

Five days a week I work with veterans. Some of the stories are horrible. There are times when you get two older veterans talking and can almost feel you are there, feeling their pain, sensing their fear. One of my favorite customers comes in everyday and tells me how many "boys we lost today" in Iraq. You can hear the sadness in his voice, see it in his eyes. Our WWII vets are dying off quickly now. We've lost 15 in the last 3 months from our veterans post alone. Say thank you while you can. Time is running out faster than many of us realize. I think this weekend, I will take the time to print out each post thanking a veteran and share it with the customers. It's something they can never hear enough.

Peg, you are so right. i love that thought, thank a veteran.

I have 2 uncles still living who fought in WWII. Yes, they are both in their 80's. I love them dearly, they were my fathers after my own was dead. What great men to take their sister's children to their hearts. THAT IS FAMILY!!!!!!

anastrophe wrote: lc posted in another topic about memorial day, and reminded that memorial day is to honor our war dead, not veterans per se. that of course doesn't mean by any stretch that one should not thank our veterans for their sacrifices every day of the year.



my uncle stelios, who died 15 years before i was born, was a heavy-machine-gunner - large machine guns, usually set up in a 'nest', too heavy for one man to carry. the specific details of how he died are (were) known only to germans who killed him. back in those days, 'hearing protection' was never considered. the consensus is that his position was flanked, and while he was shooting off into the darkness, he was shot in the back at close range by the enemy who had come around him. he was 19 years old.



http://peter.theodoropoulos.org/stan.html



my grandparents learned that he was missing in action in december 1944. they spent an agonizing two months with no news, until the telegram shown on the page above arrived. i don't know if they ever fully recovered from the loss. my father, who learned after the war that he was only about 35 miles away from Stan when he died, never really recovered either. He adored his kid brother. I can count on one hand the number of times my dad ever spoke about Stan. the emotion was just too overwhelming for him, even fifty years later.Thank you for sharing this interesting history, all of you. Looking at this photo of your family member A is mesmerizing, and tragic. My hat goes off to all WW2 vets. My grandfather (1919-1991) never served overseas but was a medic at Fort Riley, Kansas during the war. Some of his stories of young men battered and torn by war caused him to sometimes well up with tears in the eyes, which of course had the same effect on me.

David813 wrote: Thank you for sharing this interesting history, all of you. Looking at this photo of your family member A is mesmerizing, and tragic. My hat goes off to all WW2 vets. My grandfather (1919-1991) never served overseas but was a medic at Fort Riley, Kansas during the war. Some of his stories of young men battered and torn by war caused him to sometimes well up with tears in the eyes, which of course had the same effect on me.
thanks for your kind words, David.



if you go to the main url - http://peter.theodoropoulos.org - therein is my dad's story as well, in brief form. I put that site together after he passed away.

anastrophe wrote: thanks for your kind words, David.



if you go to the main url - http://peter.theodoropoulos.org - therein is my dad's story as well, in brief form. I put that site together after he passed away.Thanx for the site info. I'll definately check it out.

you are right, Saving Private Ryan had a great deal to do with it. At least for my generation; the last of the GenX-ers.

My Grampa was a Corporal at Omaha Beach. My cousins and I always asked him what it was like. If he was in any battles, if he killed any one. He never talked about it.

After seeing that movie, I understood why. Unfortunately he passed before that movie and before I could thank him.

Lost my Dad, Lt. CMDR. Melvin M Martin on May 12, 2005. Six days befroe his 81st birthday. WW2 and Korean War veteran. Thankfully, as these vets started to talk about the war, in the last few years, I was able to thank him for his service and sacrifice. Was fortunate to be able to take him (and my Mom) to France in Nov. 2002. There he was able to go to the place where his Dad fought in WW1 (near Verdun) and to where many of his buddies fought in the Normandy invasion in June 1944.

ldmartin wrote: Lost me Dad, Lt. CMDR. Melvin M Martin on May 12, 2005. Six days befroe his 81st birthday. WW2 and Korean War veteran. Thankfully, as these vets started to talk about the war, in the last few years, I was able to thank him for his service and sacrifice. Was fortunate to be able to take him (and my Mom) to France in Nov. 2002. There he was able to go to the place where his Dad fought in WW1 (near Verdun) and to where many of his buddies fought in the Normandy invasion in June 1944.
Welcome to FG, Idmartin. You sound very proud of your dad, as you have every right to be.

Hope you hang with us for a bit! :yh_peace

I have never missed watching the Festival of Remeberance at the Royal Albert hall (on the TV) It is the most moving service to watch and never fails to move me to tears. My dad was in the Royal Engineers and fought in Italy, France and Germany during WW11. He died in 1977 at the young age of 65. I miss him terribly.



The Royal British Legion is the UK's leading charity providing financial, social and emotional support to millions who have served and are currently serving in the Armed Forces, and their dependants. Currently, nearly 11 million people are eligible for our support and we receive around 300,000 calls for help every year.

The Legion was founded in 1921 as a voice for the ex-Service community and our 550,000 members continue to ensure that this voice does not go unheard. Although the needs of ex-Service people have changed over the years, we are still there to safeguard their welfare, interests and memory. British service people are in action around the world every day of the year. They know that if they need our support - now or in the future - the Legion is always on active duty for them. www.britishlegion.org.uk