Valley Patriot of the Month, Hero in Our Midst Captain Thomas J. Hudner, Jr. Ted Tripp – (May 7, 2007) CONCORD/ANDOVER – Tom Hudner was sitting in the commons area after lunch at Phillips Academy in Andover when word spread that the Japanese had just bombed Pearl Harbor. As with most young people of the era, […]
Valley Patriot of the Month By; Ted Tripp – March, 2007 METHUEN – Sixteen million Americans served in World War II. Only a fraction of this number saw action in both the European and Pacific Theaters. And only a handful of those served on both a battleship and an aircraft carrier. This brings us […]
Valley Patriot of the Month By: Ted Tripp – February, 2007 NORTH ANDOVER– On the morning of June 6, 1944, the Allies finally began the liberation of Europe from the Nazi nightmare. Tens of thousands of American, British, and Canadian troops poured onto the shores of Normandy to engage the Germans and drive them out […]
Valley Patriot of the Month By: Ted Tripp – January, 2007 NORTH ANDOVER – Muriel Katschker remembers well where she was on December 7, 1941. She was with her parents listening to the radio when the regular programming was interrupted by an announcer’s voice saying the Japanese had just attacked and bombed Pearl Harbor. […]
By: Ted Tripp – November, 2006 NORTH ANDOVER – On June 25, 1950 the North Korean Army, bolstered by Soviet tanks and aircraft, invaded South Korea. Immediately, President Harry Truman ordered General Douglas MacArthur to transfer ammunition and supplies from Japan to the ROK (Republic of Korea) Army and provide limited air support. On June […]
By: Ted Tripp – September, 2006 LAWRENCE – In early 1945, Pvt. Eldon Berthiaume of the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division was captured by the Germans in the small village of Utweiler, Germany. He and other Americans taken prisoner were force-marched deeper into Germany and, after a temporary stay at a transitional POW camp, ended up […]
VALLEY PATRIOT OF THE MONTH – AUGUST, 2006 By: Ted Tripp – August, 2006 LAWRENCE – When Eldon Berthiaume graduated from Lawrence High School in the spring of 1942, he had no idea that in less than three years he would end up with thousands of other Allied soldiers as a POW in Germany at […]
(READ PART 1) By: Ted Tripp – May, 2006 METHUEN – As 85-year-old Luther McIlwain slowly walks around the kitchen table in his Pleasant Valley home, it is obvious that this Tuskegee Airman has a lot more story to tell about his military experience during World War II. Each little parcel of information he shares […]
Read PART II By: Ted Tripp – April, 2006 METHUEN – Everyone meeting Luther McIlwain for the first time immediately realizes there is something special in the air. Even a short conversation with the 85 year-old veteran of World War II causes you to think about the greater social and political issues of our time. Every […]
By: Tom Duggan -January, 2006 NORTH ANDOVER – Lawrence native Bill Callahan served his country in two wars, World War II and the Korean War. After completing his military service, he has also spent decades volunteering in the community and working to help others. When Bill Callahan graduated from Lawrence High School in 1945, the […]
By: Dr. Charles Ormsby – November, 2005 Harvey Gibeau was born in Lawrence in 1923 and after high school he joined the Civilian Conservation Corps in the late 1930s. He vividly remembers the ever-present sense of patriotism that prevailed. Patriotism was a common household word and was an expected personal trait in his family. In […]
By: Charles Ormsby – September, 2005 NORTH ANDOVER – Alexander Milne rarely speaks of his wartime experiences, even with fellow veterans. Such conversations were uncommon even with his brother, Donald, who served on the Battleship Texas at Normandy, Iwo Jima and Okinawa, and who passed away two years ago. Alex found it difficult to […]
By: Dr. Charles Ormsby – May, 2005 Andover, Mass. – “I was furious at what they did,” said Ted Cole, recalling his emotions after hearing about the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Less than 24 hours later he and his two brothers were in line at the recruiting station in Lawrence. “The line was out the […]
By: Dr. Charled Ormsby – April, 2005 HAVERHILL, Mass. – Shortly after his 22nd birthday and nine months before Pearl Harbor, Michael Buglione went to his draft board and requested to be taken in the next round. Heck, he thought, it’s just “Goodbye dear, I’ll be back in a year.” Well, it was over […]
By: Tom Duggan: February, 2005 Cpl. Uliano can still hear General George C. Patton telling the troops not to worry about going into combat. Patton told them, “First, the enemy fires and you duck. Then, you fire and the enemy ducks.” This quote seemed humorous when Sy Uliano relayed the story, but I’m sure it […]