World War Ii

With the number of World War II veterans dying at the rate of more than 600 per day, it was a rare occasion to have two veterans of the conflict together in Chambersburg on Thursday. World War II veteran and best-selling author of “Hell's Guest,” Col. Glenn Frazier, 89, was the guest speaker at the Rotary Club meeting at The Orchards Restaurant. He shared his experiences of fighting a losing effort to save the Philippine Island of Luzon from the Japanese to the infamous six-day Bataan Death March and three years of torture in Japanese prisoner of war camps.

The Potomac Highlands World War II Roundtable of Hagerstown took a group of World War II veterans on a tour of the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 22. The trip included stops at the Iwo Jima Memorial and a tour of Arlington (Va.) National Cemetery with tour guide Mark Snell, a history professor at Shepherd University. The veterans were treated to a lunch provided by the Fort Meyer/Henderson Hall facility. The veterans met at Long Meadow Shopping Center at 7 a.m., and were served coffee donated by the Dual Highway Dunkin' Donuts and pastries from the Cookie Jar Bakery.

Submitted photo World War II veterans and a number of others attended a Roundtable Christmas party were dressed in uniform in honor of the occasion. The Potomac Highlands World War II Roundtable held its fourth annual Christmas Party honoring World War II veterans Dec. 5 at the Robinhood Retirement Community in Hagerstown. Fifty-three guests attended, including 14 WWII Army, Air Corps and Navy veterans, and those who served in Korea and Vietnam. Family members and friends of veterans also celebrated the dinner and entertainment.

Friends of the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., in conjunction with the Potomac Highlands Roundtable of Hagerstown, will conduct interviews of World War II veterans Saturday, Feb. 2, at the Morris Frock American Legion Post 42, 405 Northern Ave., Hagerstown. The purpose of the interviews is to document the contributions of each veteran who served in combat and noncombat roles. The interviews will be conducted by college students associated with the friends of the World War II Memorial.

World War II veteran Vern Brintzehofe will be honored 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 26, at the Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, 901 Dual Highway, Hagerstown. Brintzenhofe served on Saipan and Iwo Jima, where he sustained injuries and received a Purple Heart. Cost is $20; WWII veterans eat for free. There will be a cash bar. Reservation deadline is Friday, April 15. For more information, contact Jim Mills at 301-331-2683 or jmills@medtrends.net .

A large motorcade of 12 tour buses and motorhomes rolled in to Hagerstown's Clarion Hotel and Conference Center on Monday afternoon, carrying 200 men and women who served the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Along with 100 assistants traveling with the veterans, the group left Beloit, Wis., Sunday morning and made a stop in Pittsburgh that night before arriving in Hagerstown for the second year in a row, according to Mark Finnegan,...

It's been almost 70 years since a young New York City woman traveled from Brooklyn to Manhattan and enlisted in the U.S. Army. But for Florence "Flo" Miles, 90 and now living in Hagerstown, the memories are still vivid. Especially when she pages through her scrapbooks and talks about her brother, Cpl. Russell Daudelin, who died a few months after America entered World War II. "He enlisted in September 1939. I was born in '22, so I was 17," she said, "This is the battle he was killed in - the Battle of El Guettar in North Africa.

The Potomac Highlands World War II Roundtable is seeking veterans who want to tell their stories of serving in the military as part of a preservation project sponsored by the Friends of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. Potomac Highlands board member Justin Mayhue said World War II veterans who wish to participate need to contact him before the interviews are held on Feb. 2 at Morris Frock American Legion Post 42 at 405 Northern...

With each passing day, the population of living World War II veterans continues to dwindle across the nation, and with them go stories about one of the most earthshaking periods in history. Since this past June, a group called Friends of the National World War II Memorial has been seeking out the country's remaining WWII veterans and interviewing them, cataloging audio and video accounts to serve as an educational and cultural tool for generations to come, according to James Percoco, director of education for the group based in Washington, D.C. “It doesn't matter where they're from because we are losing between 600 and 1,000 World War II veterans a day as the generation passes from us very quickly,” Percoco said.

Memorial Day may kick off the summer season, but in Washington County, it also prompts a measure of reflection.  War has played a large role in the history of Washington County, and with it a connection to the broader American story.  It has given us a shared sense of community. Antietam, of course, ravaged the homes and fields around Sharpsburg during the Civil War, and less than a century later, the Allied war effort harnessed Washington County's manufacturing to help win World War II. More recently, men and women have answered the call and fought in the Middle East.

U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller on Saturday presented 10 medals to Charles Town resident Frederick Mayer, a World War II veteran who served as a clandestine agent behind enemy lines. As an Office of Strategic Services (OSS) operative, Mayer posed as a German officer in Austria. Despite being captured and tortured by the Gestapo, Mayer helped negotiate the surrender of Innsbruck in 1945, avoiding a final battle there that could have cost countless lives and caused great destruction. “Mr.

Mr. and Mrs. James A. Longmore celebrated their 60th anniversary on May 5. The couple, who wed at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Old Town Alexandria, Va., on May 2, 1953, marked the day with family and friends at Dutch's Daughter Restaurant in Frederick, Md. Mr. Longmore was born Feb. 10, 1928, in Elmer, N.J., the son of James Albert Longmore and Lilliam M Fox. He grew up in New Jersey and enlisted in the U.S. Army during the final months of World War...

With the number of World War II veterans dying at the rate of more than 600 per day, it was a rare occasion to have two veterans of the conflict together in Chambersburg on Thursday. World War II veteran and best-selling author of “Hell's Guest,” Col. Glenn Frazier, 89, was the guest speaker at the Rotary Club meeting at The Orchards Restaurant. He shared his experiences of fighting a losing effort to save the Philippine Island of Luzon from the Japanese to the infamous six-day Bataan Death March and three years of torture in Japanese prisoner of war camps.

Samuel Bender Baker, 91, of Hagerstown, Md., passed away Friday, May 10, 2013, at his daughter's home. Born Tuesday, Feb. 28, 1922, in Security, Md., he was the son of the late Samuel Evers Baker Sr. and Florence Elizabeth Fisher Baker. He retired from the Western Maryland Railway. He was a World War II veteran and was of the Catholic faith. He is survived by his daughter, Brenda Joyce Hull and her fiancé, Steven Kramer, of Hagerstown; son, Thomas Dean Baker of Hagerstown; brothers, Allan Baker of Hagerstown and George Baker of Williamsport, Md.; numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.

Byron George Ashburn, 87, of Chambersburg, Pa., passed away Wednesday, May 1, 2013, at Quincy Village. Born March 4, 1926, in Altoona, Pa., he was the son of the late Samuel George and Mildred Elizabeth Brubaker Ashburn. A 1944 graduate of Altoona High School, Mr. Ashburn went on to serve honorably in the U.S. Navy during World War II from 1944 to 1946. After his military commitment, Mr. Ashburn attended the former Shippensburg State Teachers College, where he played on the football team and graduated in 1949 with a bachelor's degree in education.

Richard Joseph McEvoy, 87, died peacefully Sunday, April 28, 2013, at his Hagerstown home surrounded by family. Born Aug. 19, 1925, in Plainfield, N.J., he was the son of Joseph A. McEvoy and Ann M. McEvoy. He is survived by his loving wife of 62 years, Dorothy Hallad McEvoy; daughter, Patricia and husband, Charles Bossler, of Richmond, Va.; daughter, Jeanette and husband, Steven MacNamara, of Sicklerville, N.J.; son, Miles McEvoy and wife, Ami Greenberg, of Washington, D.C.; sisters, Jean Mercready of Ashburn, Va., and Nancy Wroten of North Olmstead, Ohio; and seven grandchildren.

William Allen "Joe" Penner, 96, of Hagerstown, Md., passed away Thursday, April 25, 2013, at Meritus Medical Center. Born Jan. 22, 1917, in Hagerstown, he was the son of the late Paul Calvin and Hazel Irene (Poffenberger) Penner. He was an employee of M.P. Moller Organ Co. in Hagerstown, retiring in 1985 after working 49 years. He continued as a consultant until 1992 with the closing of the company. He was a U.S. Army veteran of World War II, serving as a staff sergeant with the Corps of Engineers.

Paul Ray Cartee, 90, of Hagerstown, Md., passed away on Tuesday, April 23, 2013, at Ravenwood Lutheran Village, Hagerstown. Born Jan. 24, 1923, in Smithsburg, Md., to the late Ray Clyde and Icie Rose Blickenstaff Cartee. He was employed by Fairchild Aircraft, Hagerstown for 30 years until retiring in 1986. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army serving during World War II. He was a member of Church of the Brethren, Wolfsville, Md. He was a member of AMVETS Post No. 10, Hagerstown; VFW No. 1936, Hagerstown; and Goodwill Athletic Club, Hagerstown.

John Leather wears earplugs to church, but it's not the sermon that the 88-year-old World War II veteran is trying to muffle. He said he wears the earplugs to drown out the rumble of a drum that's played when the congregation sings hymns. “I've had to leave the service a couple of times,” Leather said with a shiver. “It reminds me of artillery coming in.” Nearly 70 years ago, Leather was a sergeant in the 17th Airborne Division, a unit of paratroopers and glider soldiers who saw some of World War II's most ferocious fighting during the Battle of the Bulge and Operation Varsity.