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Local WWII veterans remember Pearl Harbor attackDec 07, 2008 (The Daily Times - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- World War II veterans living in Farmington today remember Dec. 7, 1941, as a day our nation was called to arms. Memories of the attack on Pearl Harbor, which happened 67 years ago today, are often compared to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, but veterans say the day 2,350 Americans were killed at the Hawaii naval base sparked a sense of patriotism yet unmatched. "It was the turning point for many of our lives," said Marlo Webb, a World War II Navy veteran. "If you weren't already dedicated to the military, you soon became dedicated to it." Webb recalled the fact that New Mexico National Guard soldiers were already stationed in the Philippines prior to the Pearl Harbor bombing, an element that brought the attack closer to home. "We had a vested interest in the war in the sense we already had people involved in it, neighbors and people we knew here in Farmington, so we had a little more personal tie," he said. "Kids were leaving college right and left to go enlist immediately after Pearl Harbor." The United States rallied together in self-defense, a call that lingered for years to come among enlisted young men fighting on behalf of the nation. "I realized that our nation is being threatened, and that concerned me," Howard Jones said of his decision to join the Marines a year after the jolting attack. "I feel I'm a patriot and when that disturbed me, I thought I better see what I can do about it." But people weren't angry, Jones said. Rather it was a sense of concern. "I don't think they were just angry, they were feeling dedicated to this mission: Deep in their hearts, they loved this nation and they were going to protect it the best they could," he said, recalling the attitudes of his fellow troops. Days after the attack, which practically decimated the Pacific Naval Fleet, sinking nine American war ships and damaging 21 others, the United States declared war on Japan, Germany and other Axis powers. "I think we had longer memories back then," said Bruce Salisbury, who enlisted in Durango years after the initial attack. "Most people came from working families, poor communities They literally would have given anything to see that war successfully carried out." But Dec. 7 is not a day to mourn, Salisbury said. "Something definitely good came of all the losses in World War II," he said. "I think people who just read it as history can appreciate the fact that all of those thousands and millions that died left a us a better world than we had in 1939." As World War II veterans continue to age, many into their early 90s, local Veterans of Foreign Wars posts have stopped hosting memorials on the day in 1941 that vaulted the United States into war, but memories of the day that altered the history of the nation remain vivid for those who remember. "When it comes around it brings back memories," Webb said. "It's not just another day to me." James Monteleone: [email protected] To see more of The Daily Times, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.daily-times.com. Copyright (c) 2008, The Daily Times, Farmington, N.M. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |