December 7th, 1941. Pearl Harbor Day

[jerryd6818]

80 years ago today was a Sunday. The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor & thus WWII was off & running for us, the USA.

[fergusontd]

I've been to Pearl Harbor 6 times when I was in the Navy, toured the Base numerous times and visited the Arizona Memorial. It was awe inspiring. Seen the pock marks on the buildings from the attack. We were moored at the piers close to where the Missouri is now located. ftd

[cudgee]

I'm sure Australian Diggers bunkered down under German fire in the Middle East and Europe from the early 1940's would disagree about when World War 2 started. Sadly there are only a handful of them left.

[tallguy606]

My Dad always said people in his small town in Kansas wondered - where the hell is Pearl Harbor? He went into the Navy the next day and served until 1953. Truly The Greatest Generation.

[jerryd6818]

I too have visited the Arizona Memorial. Very sobering experience.

Yes cudgee, Australia's entry into WWII (3 September 1939) was a bit earlier than US involvement, along with Canada (10th September 1939) and Great Britain (September 3, 1939). However the entry of the commonwealth countries into the war was not as dramatic as it was here in the states.

[eveled]

Not trying to take away from the importance of Pearl Harbor, and the heroics and horror of that day 80 years ago.

The tangent the thread took talking about how ww2 was already started before Dec 7,1941. It strikes a nerve with me personally.

My Grandfather saw action with the USN in China before Pearl Harbor. He came home with PTSD, no one even realized he had seen any action. After Pearl Harbor he tried to re enlist they gave him a spinal tap at his induction physical then sent him home on public transportation. He ended up with an infection and almost died from it. So he never re enlisted.

Both my grandfathers spent the war working in machine shops, my Grandmother working in a precision shop making gauges for planes and components for bomb sights.

After the war the GI’s came home and took all the jobs back. My grandmother waited on tables for the next 40 years, my grandfather as a janitor. The grandfather who was in the Navy in China washed dishes until he drank himself to death in 1965.

They all were unsung heros in my eyes, but the Grandfather I’m named after served his country proudly saw combat came home to no fan fair then saw all the ww2 veterans come home to a hero’s welcome. It had to hurt.

God bless all the men and women who were at Pearl Harbor 80 years ago.

[1967redrider]

A big thanks to all of our service members, and prayers for those we lost that day and throughout the war.

[Meridian_Mike]

Thank you Heavenly Father for the sacrifice of the men who fought and died in the service of our country at Pearl Harbor.
We owe our freedom to the brave men who fought and died in WWII. Those men were the greatest generation.
In Jesus Name I give this prayer of thanks.


I have been lucky enough to know a few men who returned from WWII (from both the Pacific and Europe).... many were just teen-agers when they joined the fight to keep tyranny from taking over the world. As y'all know, a lot of the men that saw heavy fighting did not want to talk about their experiences. The men I knew personally, never talked much about their battle experiences but they did talk about their fellow soldiers. I know this sounds cliché but they were TRULY a Band of Brothers.

[dlr110]

I've been there several times and I am humbled every time. My retirement flag is one that was flown over the Memorial, and I cherish what it represents to me.

[Captain O]

My father survived the attack. He was blown into the harbor after passing out rifles on the ship's deck. The Navy fished him out of the water, extracted a piece of shrapnel from his skull, and shipped him back out to the fleet (they were in dire need of Navy 'Frogmen'). He was an esteemed member of the Underwater Demolition Team as well as the Navy Rifle Team. As long as this old Sailor draws a breath, I will never forget!

God bless all the Sailors, Marines, and Army personnel that died that day and have served to this moment.

[fergusontd]

My father survived the attack. He was blown into the harbor after passing out rifles on the ship's deck. The Navy fished him out of the water, extracted a piece of shrapnel from his skull, and shipped him back out to the fleet (they were in dire need of Navy 'Frogmen'). He was an esteemed member of the Underwater Demolition Team as well as the Navy Rifle Team. As long as this old Sailor draws a breath, I will never forget!

God bless all the Sailors, Marines, and Army personnel that died that day and have served to this moment.

The Navy UDT Frogmen later became the Navy Seals. ftd

[Just Plain Dave]

The GREATEST Generation.
Can you imagine something like that happening now????

[cudgee]

I too have visited the Arizona Memorial. Very sobering experience.

Yes cudgee, Australia's entry into WWII (3 September 1939) was a bit earlier than US involvement, along with Canada (10th September 1939) and Great Britain (September 3, 1939). However the entry of the commonwealth countries into the war was not as dramatic as it was here in the states.

" However the entry of the commonwealth countries into the war was not as dramatic as it was here in the sates. ".

[fergusontd]

Does anyone know whose idea it was to build and who funded the Arizona Memorial? Elvis Presley! ftd

[garddogg56]

A BIG thank you to the GREATEST generation

[Captain O]

My father survived the attack. He was blown into the harbor after passing out rifles on the ship's deck. The Navy fished him out of the water, extracted a piece of shrapnel from his skull, and shipped him back out to the fleet (they were in dire need of Navy 'Frogmen'). He was an esteemed member of the Underwater Demolition Team as well as the Navy Rifle Team. As long as this old Sailor draws a breath, I will never forget!

God bless all the Sailors, Marines, and Army personnel that died that day and have served to this moment.

The Navy UDT Frogmen later became the Navy Seals. ftd

I have to keep telling people that President Kennedy changed the UDT/Frogmen to the SEAL teams of today. I have known this since Kennedy made this change just months before his assassination.

To me, this is 58-year-old history.

[Dinadan]

The date that will live in infamy. I know that others were at war long before that date, but it is the date for the United States. I am thankful that the men of that generation were up to the challenge. Today, even for an old man like me, those events seem almost as distant as ancient history.

[Meridian_Mike]

Does anyone know whose idea it was to build and who funded the Arizona Memorial? Elvis Presley! ftd

WOW.... I never knew that.
Elvis was more than just a singer.... He was a true American. IIRC, he gifted Nixon with a Colt 45 auto pistol.

try to approach the white house with a gun now-a-days......

[jerryd6818]

How Was the USS Arizona Memorial Paid For?
April 19, 2018 By: Mark Loproto

Have you ever wondered where the money comes from to finance the memorials commemorating events like the attack on Pearl Harbor? The USS Arizona Memorial has been the centerpiece of Pearl Harbor tours for more than 50 years, having been dedicated on May 30, 1962. A primary target during the December 7, 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the USS Arizona (BB-39) still sits at the bottom of the harbor, the final resting place for over a thousand men who were killed in an instant when the mighty battleship exploded and sank after a bomb pierced her forward powder magazine.

Where Did the Money Come From?

The construction of the USS Arizona Memorial, which today is a part of the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument, took not only many hands, but also the financial contributions from several notable sources. Among them was Elvis Presley, who donated his time and talents for a benefit concert in March of 1961. Though the King’s concert brought in over $64,000 ($600,000 in today's money) it was just one part of an effort to ensure the memorial was built, and represented only a fraction of its total cost.

When President Dwight D. Eisenhower approved the creation of the memorial in 1958, the estimated budget to build it was $500,000 (Appx. $4.5 Million in today's money). Although the federal government required the monument to be privately funded, it did grant $200,000 in subsidies. Thankfully, Eisenhower, Elvis, and those who attended the benefit concert weren’t the only ones who thought it was important to construct a memorial to the terrible tragedy of December 7, 1941.

One Monument – Many Donors

In 1958, after construction of the memorial was approved, the Territory of Hawaii—which was still a year away from statehood—contributed $50,000. That same year, $95,000 was raised following the appearance of Medal of Honor recipient and USS Arizona survivor Rear Admiral Samuel G. Fuqua on the reality-documentary series This is Your Life, a popular weekly program that was then in its 10th year on air.

Following Presley’s highly-publicized and very successful concert fundraiser, additional contributions came in. The Revell Model Company and the Fleet Reserve Association came together for a partnership selling plastic models of the USS Arizona, raising an additional $40,000. Later in 1961, Hawaii Senator Daniel Inouye got legislation passed to secure another $150,000 in federal funds.

Behind much of the fundraising was AMVETS, a veterans service organization that helped to secure around $250,000 in total for the memorial during the 1950s. The organization is responsible for the upkeep of the white marble wall inscribed with the names of the men who perished aboard the USS Arizona. In 1983, and again in 2014, AMVETS raised the funds needed to replace the deteriorating Wall of Remembrance.

[fergusontd]

How Was the USS Arizona Memorial Paid For?
April 19, 2018 By: Mark Loproto

Have you ever wondered where the money comes from to finance the memorials commemorating events like the attack on Pearl Harbor? The USS Arizona Memorial has been the centerpiece of Pearl Harbor tours for more than 50 years, having been dedicated on May 30, 1962. A primary target during the December 7, 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the USS Arizona (BB-39) still sits at the bottom of the harbor, the final resting place for over a thousand men who were killed in an instant when the mighty battleship exploded and sank after a bomb pierced her forward powder magazine.

Where Did the Money Come From?

The construction of the USS Arizona Memorial, which today is a part of the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument, took not only many hands, but also the financial contributions from several notable sources. Among them was Elvis Presley, who donated his time and talents for a benefit concert in March of 1961. Though the King’s concert brought in over $64,000 ($600,000 in today's money) it was just one part of an effort to ensure the memorial was built, and represented only a fraction of its total cost.

When President Dwight D. Eisenhower approved the creation of the memorial in 1958, the estimated budget to build it was $500,000 (Appx. $4.5 Million in today's money). Although the federal government required the monument to be privately funded, it did grant $200,000 in subsidies. Thankfully, Eisenhower, Elvis, and those who attended the benefit concert weren’t the only ones who thought it was important to construct a memorial to the terrible tragedy of December 7, 1941.

One Monument – Many Donors

In 1958, after construction of the memorial was approved, the Territory of Hawaii—which was still a year away from statehood—contributed $50,000. That same year, $95,000 was raised following the appearance of Medal of Honor recipient and USS Arizona survivor Rear Admiral Samuel G. Fuqua on the reality-documentary series This is Your Life, a popular weekly program that was then in its 10th year on air.

Following Presley’s highly-publicized and very successful concert fundraiser, additional contributions came in. The Revell Model Company and the Fleet Reserve Association came together for a partnership selling plastic models of the USS Arizona, raising an additional $40,000. Later in 1961, Hawaii Senator Daniel Inouye got legislation passed to secure another $150,000 in federal funds.

Behind much of the fundraising was AMVETS, a veterans service organization that helped to secure around $250,000 in total for the memorial during the 1950s. The organization is responsible for the upkeep of the white marble wall inscribed with the names of the men who perished aboard the USS Arizona. In 1983, and again in 2014, AMVETS raised the funds needed to replace the deteriorating Wall of Remembrance.

Great artical Jerry! Thanks for posting! ftd

[dlr110]

Here we are again December 7th, 2022. It has been so long since that day and fewer and fewer of that generation are with us. Each year on this day I always remember a man I met at the airport years ago.

When I was a volunteer at the USO Center at DFW Airport I was walking down the terminal one day and I noticed a tall slender elderly man standing and looking around with his ticket in hand. He had that confused look on his face that I had seen many times at this big airport. I stepped up and asked him if I could be of some help and he said yes please. We were in Terminal B and he needed to go to Terminal A so I told him I would take him to his departure gate.

We went up an escalator to the tram and road it over to Terminal A. I noticed he was wearing a ballcap like the ones I wore only his had USS Arizona Survivor on it. We began to talk, but he didn’t say much about that day, December 7th, 1941, instead he spoke more about how life had changed since then. He was a very pleasant man and I wished I would have had all day to sit and talk with him but we finally reached his gate and I had to get on to the USO Center.

I still remember the wrinkled face and the sparkle in his eyes but also how at times he would stare off into the distance as if his mind was somewhere else. Like many others of that day he is surely no longer with us and like my father who was from that generation, I miss them.

[bighomer]

David very nice story, I too miss the greatest generation.
That gentleman had some memories that most are fortunate never to see. Those ole boys are getting scarce, I can't think of one still living that I personally knew. May they rest in peace.

[1967redrider]

Another big THANK YOU to our veterans on this day of reflection.

[Ridgegrass]

Salutes to those men and women from 81 years ago. Bless them all.

We had a school secretary named Sally Baker who was a child of 6 in Hawaii when the Japanese attacked. Her father was at Robinson or Schofield Barracks, (not sure which), on December 7th. She told some harrowing stories from a child's point of view. J.O'.

[Samb]

My dad enlisted while he was still in high school. He told me the only men in town were older men and high schoolers, the rest were in the war.