Aloha!
World War II veterans, including more than a dozen survivors of the Japanese assault on the USS Oklahoma, have arrived in Honolulu for the 66th anniversary remembrance of the Pearl Harbor sneak attack and the dedication of the new USS Oklahoma Memorial.
The survivors and the first members of the Oklahoma contingent to arrive in Honolulu have been getting acquainted at the downtown Honolulu headquarters hotel and visiting some of the sites around Pearl Harbor. On Tuesday, a few of the Oklahoma survivors went to the Punchbowl, the national cemetery which is the site where the remains of 381 victims of the Japanese attack are buried in 46 graves.
(above: USS Oklahoma survivor George Smith, the youngest crew member aboard the battleship, talks about his experiences during World War II.)
Wednesday, the survivors, their family members, State Representative Gary Banz and his wife Linda, and members of the Claremore and Oklahoma City U.S. Grant Junior ROTC program took a late afternoon cruise around Ford Island, located in the center of Pearl Harbor. Captain Taylor Skardon, Commander of the Naval Station Pearl Harbor served as tour guide, providing a vivid commentary on the history of Pearl Harbor.
(above: Captain Taylor Skarden, Commander of Pearl Harbor Naval Station, hosted a tour of Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial.)
(below: Members of the Navy Junior ROTC from Claremore, Oklahoma enjoy the Pearl Harbor cruise. )
On Thursday at 2:00 p.m. (Oklahoma time) we will present a 45-minute video conference live on the Oklahoma World War II Stories website. The video conference will be available worldwide, and more than 8,000 Oklahoma school students from 77 schools have signed up to participate. They will have the opportunity to hear from Director of the Oklahoma History Center Bob Blackburn, State Senator Jim Reynolds, co-chairman of the USS Oklahoma Memorial Committee Tucker McHugh and memorial Beck, in addition to being able to ask questions of two USS Oklahoma survivors. Due to the tremendous interest, the video conference has been extended to allow additional questions for the veterans from students. Thursday night at 8:00 (Oklahoma time) OETA will present its Oklahoma World War II Stories documentary, produced by Boots Kennedye and me. The hour-long documentary will also be available worldwide on the OETA website, www.oeta.tv.
We will bring the dedication ceremony of the USS Oklahoma Memorial home to Oklahoma on Friday, starting at 4:00 p.m. (Oklahoma time) on the Oklahoma World War II Stories website. We invite you to watch as the Okie and its crew receive their long-awaited recognition with a permanent memorial on Ford Island, only a couple hundred yards from the location of the USS Oklahoma when it was hit by Japanese torpedoes.
The weather has been rainy here and temperatures cooler than expected. Storms raced across Oahu last night, knocking out power to many residents and businesses and closing the USS Arizona Memorial until afternoon. Weather should improve tomorrow for the video conference, to be held near the USS Oklahoma Memorial site, a short distance from the permanent mooring of the USS Missouri, the battleship on which the Japanese officially surrendered to end World War II. Join us for the video conference on Thursday, and check back for more updates from Pearl Harbor.
Ah hui ho (until next time), Dick Pryor
(The “Okie” survivors who have made the journey include Paul Goodyear, Casa Grande, Arizona; George Smith, Olympia, Washington; Don Lester, San Diego, California; Harold Johnson; Michael Stecz, Castro Valley, California; Garland Eslick, Amarillo, Texas; James Bounds, San Diego, California; Norm Roberts, Morro Bay, California; Ed Vezey, Center, Colorado; Dick Artley, Lewiston, Idaho; Ray Richmond, San Diego, California; Bill Hendley, Wilmington, North Carolina; and Louis Egnatovich, Lake City, Florida. George Brown of Honolulu had a much shorter trip. Willie Roesler of Canyon Lake, Texas is also in Hawaii to share the activities with his surviving shipmates. Roesler was a crew member of the Oklahoma before the December 7, 1941 attack and had shipped out to Midway Island aboard the USS Medusa in February, 1941.)
December 6th, 2007 at 5:57 pm
Great job to Dick Pryor and OETA for covering this important event. The WWII Oklahoma War Stories are outstanding and it is so important to archive before we lose the voices of all those who served during this pivotal time in our nation’s history.
Thank you for this project.
May 27th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
I used to work with Louise Egnatovitch at the Govt. Printing
Office in Washington DC. I am glad he is still around and is
actively participating in the BB37 reunions and meetings. I am still working In Rockville Md where he used to live.
Sincerely, Jerry Rarden