A number of us attended the 70th anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack at the Naval Station Everett. Four survivors of the attack were present at the ceremony which one of them, Ray Wans, who was aboard the USS Curtiss on Sunday morning, December 7, 1942, was the keynote speaker. Of course, our own Post member, Erv Schmidt, was also in attendance. Erv, as most of you know, was on the USS California which was sunk.
What came out of Ray’s speech and from our knowledge of what Erv did that day, was the extraordinary heroism of the military personnel who were suddenly attacked. How they reacted that day is a reflection to the training and discipline they had instilled in them and a reflection of their commitment to their shipmates and duty. In his concluding remarks, Mr. Wans stated it was “an honor to serve that day”. On behalf of the veterans present that day, it was an honor to be in the presence of those four Peal Harbor survivors.
One further note, the commander of the Naval Station, Capt. Michael Coury, thanked all the veterans who attended the ceremony and wishes to make sure that every veteran is invited to attend in the future. So while Posts of District One made an impressive showing, hopefully even more will attend in the future.