Byron.seales.veterans.day.presentation
•Download as PPTX, PDF•
1 like•368 views
Veteran's Day Presentation by WWII Vet, Byron Seales, for Madeira Elementary in Cincinnati OH.
Recommended
More Related Content
What's hot
More from Alli Wischer
Recently uploaded
Recently uploaded (20)
Byron.seales.veterans.day.presentation
- 1. Byron Seales World War II Veteran U.S. Navy
- 3. Tight Quarters on a Submarine
- 4. USS Dolphin
- 11. Southern Cross in the Pacific Night Sky
- 13. Going on Leave
- 14. New Caledonia
- 15. New Zealand
- 16. Australia
- 17. Fiji and Solomon Islands
- 18. Iwo Jima
- 19. Mine Sweeping Near Borneo and India
- 20. VFW
- 21. VFW and American Legion Poppies for Memorial Day
- 22. VFW and American Legion Flags for Veterans’ Day
Editor's Notes
- Introduce Yourself:Mr. Seales, Reid Wischer’s Great Grandfather, age 92.
- On December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor in Hawaii was attacked. Many US Ships and lives were destroyed that day and our President. Thousands of young men joined the war after Pearl Harbor. I joined the Navy just two weeks after Pearl Harbor. I lived in New Jersey, all the way across the country and joined when I was 19 years old. Went to Connecticut to go to submarine school. Trained for 60 days or two months and then we went to our first war assignment.
- On a submarine its very crowded. I could get through walking around but lots of sailors had to bend their head. Anyone who was really tall didn’t qualify for sub duty because they were too big. Sleeping on folding bunks that hung on chains three high – so tight you couldn’t sit up in your bed. Under the ocean it felt different – harder to breathe, sometimes we used oxygen masks when we went down deep and strong smell of diesel oil.
- and then went to first assignment on a submarine. The submarine traveled for three weeks to Murmansk Russia. The people of this Russian town had no food. Our submarine job was to look for German battle cruisers who were sinking lots of ships.
- My job was fire controllman – was in charge of the torpedos and the portable gun on deck. I maintained them, cleaned them, took care of the electrical system. Torpedo is a long shell with a propeller to power it through the water and ammunition on the front.
- Subs had to come up at night to charge batteries – about every three days. Had to be careful and hope there weren’t enemy ships that could see us.
- Transferred to a Destroyer ship. USS Phillip was a brand new ship and we trained as a fleet – 8 or 9 ships – practicing. Guantanomo Bay & Santiago Cuba and Puerto Rico.
- Went to Panama through the Panama Canal to get to Pacific.
- Went to Hawaii to Pearl Harbor to refuel – still lots of damage from the attack. So a large ship came to us to refuel. South Pacific – fighting vessel – can’t use a battleship without a destroyer. From Hawaii to a number of other places in the South Pacific.
- Be at sea for long amounts of time. At night, no lights or flashlights because they could be seen miles away at sea. Beautiful sky – stars so different, southern cross constellation which can only be seen certain times of the year. Pacific Ocean was very quiet and calm, very clear, you could see lots of marine life
- Always something to do on the ship – constantly looking for enemy subs and warships, lots of maintaining and cleaning the ship.
- Refuel, get off ship, get food from lots of ports. Had liberty to sight see for a day – leave ship @ 10, be back by 4. Some of the places in South Pacific
- New Caledonia
- New Zealand, Volcanoes & Sheep
- Australia
- Fiji & Solomon Islands
- Once the South Pacific was under control your ship was sent to the central Pacific to Guam and to escort other large ships that carry giant supplies (tanks and stuff)Iwo Jima – very famous – beginning of the end of the war – when US started winning the Pacific -- famous picture of the marines.
- Left the big fighting in Japan and went to Borneo – part of a fleet whose job was to remove bombs in the harbor called mines. So mine sweepers would clear the harbor with nets, bring the mines to the open ocean, then my ship would fire on them to make the water safe to travel again.
- That you are VFW and American Legions groups for Veterans who have served in any branch of the military. Go to hospitals to visit veterans who are disabled. Raise money to help veterans families. Helps younger veterans when they come back from war. Lots of speaking to groups.
- Two important holidays: Memorial Day lots of parades. Talk about Poppies -- Flanders Fields – where the poppies are is where many soldiers died. Give poppies during Memorial Day to honor all the people who have died serving our country.
- Veterans Day – give away flag – honor those who are living and have served our country.
- Veterans Day – give away flag – honor those who are living and have served our country.