Let's Make a T-Shirt!

So at our unit meeting last Sunday we started talking about t-shirts and the fact that our group needs an official unit shirt. We decided long ago that we would come up with a design featuring a 2nd Division photo on the front and a listing of all the cities and towns that the 2nd liberated or went through during World War II on the back. Think of it as a rock group tour shirt except for the army. Then I brought up the idea that we should do something that would be authentic for the World War II soldier to wear as well, to be worn under our uniforms when training or in the field. A lot of you may have seen a famous t-shirt design that the Airborne troops wore during the war featuring an open parachute and the words "U.S. Paratroops - Ft.Benning, Ga." Well, I commented that maybe we could do something with Camp McCoy, Wisconsin seeing as how the 2nd did a lot of their training there. Will Green google searched it to see if anything would come up and "BAM" there it was! This is a photo of Ray Nosaka at Camp McCoy sometime in 1942 with the verbage and design we were looking for.

Being a graphic designer, I said I could pretty much replicate the design and we could make a batch of them for our unit. So here it is folks! I may have to tweak a few minor things, but I think the finished product should look pretty similar to this. The first photo here is the artwork that I developed and the second photo shows what the design should look like on a plain white 1940's style t-shirt. This particular shirt is sold by At The Front for $15. You can check them out here:

http://www.atthefront.com/us/uniforms/underwear.html

March 27th Unit Meeting

The men of the 2nd I.D. LHA gathered at Brewsky's Bar & Grill on Sunday, March 27 to refine our plans for the next few months' events. The primary goal of the meeting was to decide what our course of action would be for the upcoming Doolittle Tokyo Raiders 69th Anniversary Reunion running from April 14-17. We will be focusing our efforts on doing a large static display at the Strategic Air & Space Museum on Saturday night and Sunday morning in conjunction with the reunion's other events. Our unit members will be dressed in authentic uniforms representing the navy, army infantry, engineers, mechanics and other 1942-themed impressions. I am really looking forward to this events and to hopefully meeting the five surviving Doolittle Raiders. As is the case with so many of the events we participate in, this will truly be a once in a lifetime experience!

March Rolls In Like A Lion

On Sunday, March 6, the men of "Item" Company gathered at Ft. Atkinson State Historical Park for some outdoor field training and close order drill. The scenario for the day was to envision that we were indeed training at Camp McCoy, Wisconsin in March of 1943 before the 2nd Division headed overseas. And while we were well prepared for our training, we were all quite unprepared for the extremely cold temperatures and blustery winds. I've been to some pretty cold events throughout my years as a reenactor, but this had to be one of the most miserable days I've been through. We were all dressed for slightly warmer weather and while the M1941 Field Jacket may be quite stylish, it's nowhere near sufficient as a cold weather coat. Brrrrrr!!! This first photo is Jeff, Kevin and Matt preparing for our first drill exercises. Looks like Mr. Hazard has been in the field for two weeks with all that scruff!

Here's a pretty cool photo of our six M-1 Garand rifles and our helmets. We'll have to work on stacking arms again once the weather gets a little nicer.

A very dapper Mr. Scott Rowe models the 5 Button Highneck Sweater and the Wool Knit Jeep Cap. Both items were well loved by the G.I.s back in 1944.
After an hour and a half of close order drill, we spent some time scouting out the area and practicing squad formations and movement. Here's a shot of Jeff and Dave pushing forward after getting the "all clear" sign from our scouts.
Ahhh, a close-up shot of yours truly. Note the world-famous "Indianhead" insignia of the 2nd Division painted on my steel pot. Looks like the cold has put me into a rather grouchy mood - either that our I'm just trying to play the part of the mean, old drill sergeant.
Kevin acted as our squad leader for the field training portion of the day. Here he discusses with Jeff the proper procedures for scouts to enter a wooded area. Our two scouts, Matt and Scott, had deserted us by this point and were nowhere to be seen.
Oh there they are! Turns out that Matt and Scott were working for the Germans and started blasting away at us as soon as we came upon their hiding places. Very tricky those two - the smirks say it all. We'll see if they ever get to be scouts again!
Pvt. Matt Hazard, or is it Jeremiah Johnson...??? Either way, he performed well in the field and we're glad he made it out for the day.
After a quick refresher course on unit hand signals we decided to pack it up and head back to the fort. That wind just blew right through us out in those woods.
We held a little admin meeting as we cracked open some K-ration canned meat and crackers. Hazard brought a six pack of bottled Coke so we all had one of those as well. It was fun to see everyone again and get in a little training, but it's safe to say that we're all ready for spring. And hopefully March will go out like a lamb and not like a lion.

In Memoriam

Last week marked the 43rd anniversary of the night SPC 4 Donald Steven Waite was killed near Quang Tri, South Vietnam on February 9. Donald, or Donnie as his family called him, was a soldier in Alpha Company of the 502nd Infantry, 101st Airborne Division. He was from Omaha, Nebraska and was the brother of Karen McGrane who is a longtime friend of my mother. My Armed Forces Day display in May 2010 was dedicated to Donnie.

As stated, Donnie was with A Co 1/502 which had been stationed at Ft. Campbell, Kentucky before arrival in Vietnam in December 1967. February saw 1/502 in the middle of operation, “Jeb Stuart”. Many logistical problems occurred under the constant moving concept used by the Brigade. There was a great shortage of clothing, batteries, LSA, all types of class IV barrier material, demolitions, hand grenades, trip flares, booby traps, and claymore mines.

During the day of Feb. 8, the 1st Battalion continued search and destroy operations southeast of Quang Tri. Light contact was made during the day. Aerial observation and other sources had given 1/502 credit for 250 NVA killed for the period Feb. 4-8 1968. But during the night of Feb. 8, Alpha Company and Bravo Company were infiltrated by enemy sappers. Attacks were very heavy. During the night and into the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 9, eight 502nd men were killed with an additional 19 being wounded in action. Eleven NVA were killed. Among the dead were the following:

SSG Benard John Caron

Canada / Age 31

SP6 Charles J. Crawford, Jr.

Jersey City, New Jersey / Age 20

CPL Clyde Lawrence De Mello

El Cerrito, California / Age 18

SP4 Thomas Norton

New York, New York / Age 20

SP4 Charles Edward Novel

Dyersburg, Tennessee / Age 21

SP4 Benjamin John Terejko, Jr.

Solvay, New York / Age 20

2LT Douglas Burem Wade

Kingsport, Tennessee / Age 20

SP4 Donald Steven Waite

Omaha, Nebraska / Age 19

So this is my salute to Donnie. A kid doing what he loved, just trying to stay alive and make his way home. You are missed by many. You will always be remembered.

Unit Schedule for 2011

We held a unit meeting at Brewsky's Bar & Grill on Sunday, January 30th and finalized the remainder of our 2011 schedule. We might not get to everything on this list, because it's a nice ambitious list, but we'll sure try! Some of the dates and times may change. We'll see you in the field!

Sunday, February 13
Unit admin meeting 3:00PM

Brewsky's Bar & Grill

Saturday, February 26 - CANCELLED
Outdoor Option - Winter training event at Little Sioux, Iowa
Indoor Option - Air & Space Museum / Admin & drill training

Sunday, March 6
Outdoor Field Training Event & Drill
Fort Atkinson, Nebraska

Sunday, March 27
Indoor or Outdoor Field Training Event
Date and location to be determined

April 16 & 17

2011 Doolittle Tokyo Raiders 69th Anniversary Reunion

Air & Space Museum

Saturday, April 30
Outdoor Field Training Event - Campaign Hats & Wools
Fort Atkinson, Nebraska

Saturday, May 21 (TENTATIVE)
Armed Forces Day Exhibit - Air & Space Museum

Saturday, June 4
Military Timeline Event - possible overnight bivouac
Ft. Atkinson, Nebraska

June 24, 25, 26
Tactical battle hosted by 508th PIR - Little Sioux, Iowa

Monday, July 4
Annual 4th of July Parade - Ralston, Nebraska

July 9 & 10 (TENTATIVE)
25th Annual John C. Fremont Days - Unit display & recruiting event
Fremont, Nebraska

August 26, 27, 28
90th Annual 2nd Infantry Division Assn. National Reunion
Sheraton Westport Hotel, St, Louis, MO 63146

Saturday, September 3
Drill Training Event - Ft. Atkinson, Nebraska

October
2nd I.D. Sponsored Tactical Event - Possibly at Grand Island, Nebraska urban combat site
Date to be determined

November 2011
Veteran's Day Parade or Exhibit - Location to be determined

Ed Mauser Passes - Omaha's Easy Company Veteran

Ed Mauser, Omaha's very own "Band of Brothers" veteran, died at his home on Friday, January 21 at the age of 94. Ed was the oldest surviving member of the 101st Airborne Division's famed "Easy Company" of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. He parachuted into France during the early morning hours of D-Day and fought his way across Europe through Operation Market Garden, the Battle of the Bulge and finally ended up capturing Hitler's Eagle's Nest at Berchtesgaden. Mauser was a Private First Class and rifleman in Easy's 2nd Platoon. In addition to earning two Bronze Stars, he also earned two Purple Hearts for shrapnel wounds suffered in Belgium.

Mauser was a native of Peru, Illinois. He was working in the wristwatch department at the Westclox clock factory in LaSalle, Illinois, when the United States entered World War II after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. He was drafted into the Army about six weeks later at age 25. His first Army outpost was with the horse cavalry at Fort Riley, Kansas, which soon transformed into a mechanized cavalry unit. Mauser was sent to Fort Benning, Georgia and volunteered for paratrooper training. After the war he went back to work for Westclox and married Irene Furlan. Both were children of Slovakian immigrants. They were married 58 years. Mauser moved the family to Omaha from Illinois in 1960. He repaired watches and learned the jewelry business at the Time Center shop. He was a member of the American Legion in Millard.

Edward “Babe” Heffron, a fellow Easy Company veteran, was saddened by Mauser's death. “It's a shame,” Heffron said. “Ed was a good soldier. He went through his share of hell.” Lynn “Buck” Compton was Mauser's platoon leader. They parachuted from the same C-47 on D-Day. “We had a lot of esprit de corps in our outfit,” Compton said. “We were pretty close, and we were proud of our unit.” Mauser enjoyed all of the Band of Brothers glory, but he rejected any attempts to paint him as a hero. “No. I was no hero," Mauser said. "I was one of the guys. That's all.” With the passing of Ed Mauser, there are now 35 known living veterans of Easy Company.

Medal of Honor Event

On Saturday, January 15, five recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor gathered for a public speaking engagement and autograph session at the Strategic Air & Space Museum near Ashland, Nebraska. The five in attendance pictured left to right, Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta, who was awarded the medal for his actions during a 2007 battle in Afghanistan, Captain Thomas Hudner, who crash landed his Corsair to try to save another pilot during the Korean War, Colonel Donald Ballard, a Vietnam War hero and U.S. Navy Corpsman, Chief Warrant Officer Hershel "Woody" Williams, who won the medal for his actions on Iwo Jima, and Sergeant Peter Lemon who was a 1st Air Cavalry recipient from the Vietnam War. They are shown here with Shane Sedlak, a local 12 year old who drew portraits of each of the Medal of Honor guests.
SSgt Giunta and Col. Ballard stand together before the speaking portion of the day. I was very inspired to be so close to these men, standing in the presence of these true heroes.
I was pretty impressed with SSgt. Giunta's dress uniform. The highly polished black leather jump boots looked amazing with the blue dress trousers bloused in them. The black jump boots definitely harkened back to the Airborne uniform of the early 1960's.
Here CWO "Woody" Williams poses with some fellow veterans who were there in support of the Medal of Honor guests and all other veterans. These guys are motorcycle enthusiasts who do a lot to support the local veteran community.

I took a stroll through the rest of the museum after the Medal of Honor event just to take it all in. I had to stop by my favorite airplane in the museum's collection, the B-17G Flying Fortress. Every time I stand before this amazing old "Queen of the Skies" my mind is filled with awe and wonder at how it must have felt to be a part of the Eighth Air Force's daylight bombing runs. You have to have a lot of respect for those brave souls who flew around in these bombers day in and day out.