Home of the Brave

A FORGOTTEN BOY. A FORGOTTEN WAR. AN UNFORGETTABLE TRUE STORY. “Waiting in the Wings”* is dedicated to the many forgotten, unknown, and missing everyday heroes of the Korean War who “answered the call to defend a country they never knew and a people they never met.” My father, Neal Tusler, was one of them. Born and raised in Minnesota during the Great Depression, Neal answered his draft letter at age…

Iwo Jima –– A Marine Hero By Walter D. Haynes  When I returned from Iwo Jima last March, I wrote about my visit to Trimble Field on Guam. Trimble Field is a baseball field named after Jimmy Trimble. He was a St. Albans School graduate and baseball star. He had signed a contract with the Washington Senators, but joined the Marines before playing professionally. After…

A Tale of Two Brothers who served in WWII Chicago in the 1920’s was roaring to say the least. Robert Raymond Danko was born on September 10, 1921, followed four years later by John Wallace Danko born November 15, 1925. Their father died at an early age leaving their mother, Dora to raise two boys alone in the midst of the Great Depression….

Theodore Ellison Snell, WWII USN Vet I am writing to add my uncles name to your WWII registrar. He was born 6 Apr 1927 in New York. He is currently living in Bullhead, AZ. He served in the US Navy on a sub tender. Kevin S Jorrey UE  

Richard F. Bell My father, Richard F. Bell, served in the US Navy during the war.  He was on a destroyer named The Furse.  He was a 1st Class Machinist Mate and worked in the boiler room of the destroyer.  He often said, “if we were hit by a torpedo, those in the engine room knew we were dead”.  They knew they wouldn’t get out alive because they were in…

Images broadcast all over the world about the D-day in Normandy remind me of stories recounted by my father, Carlo Asola. Born on 22nd January 1924 in Neive (Italy), he fought in Libya and Tunisia and was a PoW, before becoming a cooperator for the Americans, ready to lend a hand for the liberation of Europe. A boy from northern Italy, he came across with all the crucial phases of…

A Story About D-Day About 40 years ago, I had the rare and unique honor of hearing one veteran’s first-hand account of D-Day. I was in my last year at UGA, in Athens, GA. I lived off campus in a rental house in a pretty basic 1960’s era suburban neighborhood. My next door neighbors were a couple by the name of Bert and Inez H***. They were really good neighbors,…

My Dad, Lt William L. France was on Omaha Beach on D-Day. He was in the 29th infantry Division. I only heard him talk about it one time. In 1984 we were stationed in Germany and my Dad, Mom and Aunt and Uncle game to tour Europe. One tour was Normandy and we went with them. At the first stop, my Dad got off the bus and with a lump…

HEROIC HOME RUNS  By Art Hoffman Louisville, Kentucky Back in 1964 when I graduated high school, my primary challenge was to make sure I had good grades, and get into college. Understandably, there was never any concern about high school reunions which might occur decades later. But it was those very reunions which have now impacted me so profoundly. Namely, the simple decision to attend a 60th high school reunion revealed…

Thomas Hoke Helped Liberate Concentration Camp Thomas Hoke served 20 months in Europe with the U.S. Army during World War II.  His unit was the first to reach the Buchenwald concentration camp, leaving memories and scars that would last a lifetime.    An incredible story, as told to the Fredericksburg Times, prior to his passing.  Rest In Peace, American hero. https://www.fredericknewspost.com/news/continuing_coverage/ww2_vets/thomas-hoke-helped-liberate-concentration-camp/article_6bbf4fbd-eb7e-5276-95be-9a514c1dfbf1.html