Thank you for your service

With Veteran's Day approaching, I thought it would be a good time to run another encore post from August, 2014 about one of Raymond's veterans, Elmer Carriker. Elmer was the son of Joseph Elmer and Cleo Carriker of Raymond. The couple had ten children. Four of their sons served at the same time in World War II: Charles, Philip, William, and Elmer, Jr. Their younger brother, Kenneth, served in the Army in the Korean War. The last surving Carriker sibling, William "Bill" Carriker, recently died on October 30th at the age of 97. 

 
On August 14, 1945, Japan surrendered unconditionally to the Allies, effectively ending World War II. Since then, both August 14 and August 15 have been known as “Victory Over Japan Day,” or simply “V-J Day.”

The following information appears in Raymond's 125th Anniversary book: 

Raymond celebrated V-J Day on Tuesday, August 14, 1945 shortly after 6:00 p.m. when the official announcement came over the radio that Japan had accepted the Allied terms of unconditional surrender. The fire siren sounded continuously, and the church bells rang out the good news. Automobile horns sounded without ceasing and gunpowder and firecrackers added to the noise. Many Raymond people went to church Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning. Stores in Raymond were closed all day Wednesday.

Elmer Carriker of Raymond was witness to the signing of the Japanese surrender in World War II. Carriker was in the U.S. Navy stationed aboard the USS Wren which saw engagements in Okinawa and the Aleutian Islands with the Third Fleet. on the morning of August 16, 1945 the Wren was among a combined fleet of over 100 ships near the Japan shores. Carriker watched through binoculars as the Japanese taxi boat drew near the USS Missouri and saw the Japanese officers sign the surrender documents in front of General MacArthur and Admiral Halsey.

Special thanks to Janna Carriker Lawrence and Keith Carriker for providing Elmer's photo.