I’m
sure Jiggs’ sentiments were shared by the 230 men from Raymond served in WWII,
as well as four women who served in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, and one woman who
served in the U.S. Marines Women’s Reserve Corps. Given the town’s small population,
this number is astounding and obviously had a profound effect not only on those
who served, but those who remained home as well. Many left their families and
livelihoods, and everyone in town made sacrifices in one way or another.
I
grew up hearing a lot about life during the war. My dad spoke frequently about
his trip with Uncle Sam that began on
May 26, 1943, the day his size 16 feet were squarely planted on the deck of the
Queen Elizabeth as it sailed out of New York Harbor headed for Scotland. Once
overseas, he was added as a replacement to the 861st ordinance
company at the last minute, a fluke that probably saved his life since the
members of his original unit out of Fort DuPont, Delaware were sent to the
Pacific arena where many were killed in action.
He spent
over two years in England, France, Belgium and Germany, and during that time, logged
the location of his unit on a piece of paper that he stored in his mess kit. Since
his company advanced through Europe behind the action, his experiences in the
war were mainly positive; he learned a trade, improved his physical stamina,
and developed discipline and character.
He
loved to tell the story about a night in France when all the other guys in his
unit spent an entire evening drinking, smoking, and gambling, while he spent
the evening crafting a weatherproof bag out of old potato sacks that he could
use to protect his gear. As predicted, heavy rains moved in and the next
morning, and my dad, the youngest member of the unit, was the only one who had
a dry blanket, dry socks, dry boots, and no hangover.
“The
other fellas had wet socks and cold feet for days, but mine were nice and dry
and warm,” he would say with a big smile as he patted his leg. After hearing
this cautionary tale dozens of times over the years, I came to realize that while
it is true that having dry socks is important, there was a lot more to this
story. It was full of timeless advice that could be applied to many situations
in life: Don’t drink too much. Don’t gamble. Spend your time doing something constructive. Think. Don’t do something
just because everyone else is doing it. Get
your work done before you play. Sacrifice
now and be comfortable later. These and all the lessons Dad learned during
the war remained with him the rest of his life, and he tried to instill them in
his children every time he had the chance.
Just
like Jiggs, Dad headed straight back to Raymond after the war. The last entry
on his list was dated November 17, 1945: “Via
Wabash Railroad to Litchfield, Illinois with Slats Eickoff, then hitchhiked
home.”
He and
Raymond resident, Elmer “Slats” Eickoff, happened to run into each other in
Chicago on November 16, 1945, the day they received their discharge papers from
the United States Army. The pair stayed overnight at the Red Cross in Chicago
before boarding a southbound train the next morning. By 1945, passenger train
service had been discontinued in Raymond and the closest stop was Litchfield. As
they got closer and closer to home, the two discussed the dim prospect of
having to pass right through Raymond without stopping and continue on south to Litchfield.
They considered pulling the emergency brake, but worried about being arrested,
so they sat back and watched out the window as Main Street and the Cottonwood
tree went by in a flash. Fifteen minutes later, they arrived at Litchfield
and then hitchhiked back to Raymond on Route 66. (Another lesson: Be patient. Don’t do something stupid that you’ll
regret later.)
Like
my Dad, Jiggs Hough, and Slats Eickhoff, most came back from the war and went
on to raise families, be leaders in the community, and make the most out of
life. Sadly, eight men from Raymond gave their lives in World War II:
Murray
Bost – killed in action over Tunis, Africa on 4/19/43
Marvin
Frank Brown – killed in action over Europe on 6/26/43
John
R. Mitts – 7/10/43
Robert
E. Mayfield – 2/22/44
Leslie
J. Tucker – 12/11/44
Edward
Martin – killed on Luzon Island on 2/19/45
Charles
C. Varner – 3/8/45
Billy
V. Vanzant – killed in Germany on 4/10/45
We
are currently living in an age when many people no longer have first-hand
knowledge about life during WWII. As we begin a New Year and a new decade, it seems
more important now than ever to remember the people who served and reflect upon
their examples of resilience, hope, and sacrifice.
