I grew up in Walnut Creek, California and joined the Marine Corps at 17, shortly after Pearl Harbor. When I was 18, I was in B Company, 1^st Battalion, 10^th Marines in the 2^nd Marine Division. The amphibious assault of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll on 20 November 1943 was my first such campaign, followed with the same sort of amphibious landings at Saipan, Tinian and Okinawa.

The Harris-class attack transport USS Zeilin (APA-3) was my ride to Tarawa. This is the same vessel formerly known as the SS President Jackson before the Navy acquired it in1940. It is also the vessel that was used in the summer of 1943 in the Word War II movie “Guadalcanal Diary.”

USS Zeilin (APA-3)

A PHOTO OF USS Zeilin COMES HERE SOON.

EFATE ISLAND, VANUATU

A SPACE VIEW PHOTO OF EFATE ISLAND COMES HERE SOON.

From New Zealand, we went to Efate in the New Hebrides (the present-day Republic of Vanuatu) to join Task Force 53 for several days of training. As part of TransDiv4, we travelled in convoy to Betio on Tarawa Atoll arriving one the day before the battle began on 20 November 1943.

In the early morning hours of D-Day, I remember walking around our deck area watching the action as the Navy bombarded Betio. Even from a few miles off shore, we could hear the shells exploding and see the fires. A lot of smoke. Quite a fireworks show!

In the 1^st wave on D-Day, I was with a party of about 30 accompanying a unit of 2^nd Battalion, 8^th Marines to locate a place for setting up a firing battery. I don’t know about memories of stuff I did during that 1^st wave, but I still distinctly remember my fear and trembling over what I was getting into. I was aghast at the slaughter going on, at the sheer noise of explosions, the smoke from explosions and fires and, simply, the confusion we saw. With my pack, rifle and a dispatch case, I sometimes wondered whether I was adequately equipped to deal with the situation I was getting into.

When the fighting began to cool off, I was in the center of Betio. I was exhausted, dirty, hungry, thirsty, sunburned, but that was a lot better than many guys who were wounded or never came home. Almost a week went by before I was able to get off Betio.

Medals received included the Presidential Unit Citation for my service at Tarawa. By the war’s end, most or all of the usual medals that other guys got were in my pocket, too. I was no hero, so I just never paid much attention to medals.

Richard, we thank you for your service. We needed people like you, and you did your duty. Thank you.

SEMPER FI, RICHARD !

Received 18 November 2010

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