My father was drafted on Mar. 7, 1945, in Altoona, Pennsylvania. He did his Basic Training at Camp Blanding, Florida. After Basic, and two weeks leave at home, he was sent to Ft. Ord, California. World War II ended as my father was preparing to leave Ft. Ord, CA. for the Philippines. He was a Heavy Weapons Crewman in the 52nd FAB, 24th Infantry Division, at that time.
My father liked to tell the story of how he became a Medic. During morning formation on Sept. 27, 1945, while in the Philippines, the First Sgt. asked if anyone had a high school diploma. My father said he was the only one that raised his hand. He was told to report to the Medical Detachment, where he spent his remaining time in the service.
After he was discharged in July 1946, he reported back to his previous civilian job, Aircraft Mechanic with the Glen L. Martin Aircraft Co. in Middle River (Balto.) MD.
On July 20, 1948 he joined the Army Reserve. He served with the 457th General Hospital/100th Station Hospital in Balto. MD until his retirement as a MSG on July 6, 1977.
On May 16, 1949 he left Glen L. Martin and was hired as a Hospital Attendant at the VA Hospital in Ft. Howard (Balto.) MD. He worked there until his retirement as an Operating Room Nursing Asst. on July 26, 1978.
He was married to my mother (Geraldine Mathieu- aka 'Jeri') for 59 years, 5 months, when she passed away on June 6, 1999. My father passed away at the age of 90 yr. 5 mo. 17 days on Dec. 23, 2007.