July 1, 2010

Saluting our Freedom

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During World War II, young men from all over the country joined together to fight as a “band of brothers.”
For Paul Gordon, he just wanted to follow in the footsteps of his actual band of brothers, who were already serving in the military or preparing to.

“It was my feeling that I wanted to serve,” said Gordon, who eventually got the chance to serve in the Navy Air Corps during World War II as part of the pilot training program in Florida.
However, he was unable to go as early as he wanted to.
“I wanted to go in when I was younger and still in school,” said Gordon. “But my dad said no because he felt we had enough of the family in service at that time.”
Gordon was one of eight brothers who served their country during the 1940s and 50s, serving in various areas throughout the world.
Gordon said family members are proud of their service and the chance they had to do something for their country. Because of that, Gordon created a picture frame with each member of the family with current pictures along with pictures from when they served.
Gordon said along with his brothers’ example, his desire to become a member of the military was a sense of duty.
“It was my feeling that I wanted to serve,” said Gordon. “I didn’t like it that all these other guys and my brothers were fighting and I was here at home.”
Gordon recounted the service of each of his brothers, including:
Russell: “He was drafted and served stateside.”
Willard: “He served in the military for four years.”
Clifford: “He was in the North African campaign and was part of the second wave onto Normandy.”
Bob: “He served in the Navy in the South Pacific campaign.”
Max: “He entered the Marine Corps at 17 and served in China and then in Korea.”
Eugene: “He was in the Navy at 15 and then went into the Army and was part of the occupational forces in Japan.”
Marshall: “He was in Germany for two or three years as part of the occupational forces.
Gordon said he is also proud of the fact that all of his brothers and he served honorably.
“Everyone came out of the military with honorable discharges,” said Gordon. “I liked the service, and I think that they all did, too.”