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Archiver > GEN-NEWBIE > 2002-04 > 1018060080


From: Elaine Dickson/Jorgensen <>
Subject: Re: Memories
Date: Fri, 05 Apr 2002 18:28:30 -0800
References: <19c.3dcc4e.29df9ec2@aol.com>


Sandra, your story was so touching. It made me cry. What a great Tribute
to your father. He must have been terribly proud of you to honor him so.
ElaineJ
--
E l a i n e J O R G E N S E N nee D I C K S O N
P u y a l l u p , W a s h i n g t o n , U S A
D I C K S O N * T A Y L O R * B I N G H A M
C o u n t y D o w n , I r e l a n d
My ancestors did WHAT?!?

wrote:
>
> Sometimes it is hard to get information from our families. Many have painful
> memories that for decades they have chosen to "forget" or at least never
> speak of. I think the most painful are War memories.
>
> When I began my research, my father sent me his military discharge papers.
> I was stunned. He had never spoken of WWII other than to say he was in the
> Air Force--known then as the Army Air Corps. He was in the Pacific
> Theatre--Soloman Islands. I read history books, copied photos of the
> make-shift landing strips on various Islands. they "hop-Scotched from Island
> to Island. I kept calling my father and asking questions. He would say, "I
> don't remember. It was a long time ago. It was nothing."
>
> One day I packed up my records and flew to his home. Dragged him onto the
> "Porch" and said, "Daddy, this is important to me. Please help me to
> understand." I pulled out photos and other information I had compiled. The
> floodgates opened and he shared the entire story with me. We both sat out
> there crying for hours. But I got the story.
>
> I wrote it all up. I gave it to him shortly before he died. It was a
> tribute to him.
>
> One of his memories touched me so much. As they were Hop-Scotching north,
> they pulled into a port. He saw that the ship next to them was the ship his
> brother served on. He mentioned it to a crewmember. Shortly afterward, he
> saw his brother approach in a dinghy. His brother boarded and they visited
> for a couple of hours. The image of two brothers, together for a brief time
> in a horrible war, greeting hello--and possibly good-bye-is one I'll never
> forget.
>
> When I gave my father the material I had compiled, he cried and said "Thank
> you."
> This is why we research. this is what fuels my research. Because Heaven is
> really that you're remembered. That you have left a part of your life behind
> in other's hearts and minds. Sandra
>
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