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Sharing living quarters with scores of total strangers, with little chance for privacy, let alone peace and quiet, was the biggest adjustment any civilian faced after entering the military. Here are stories about being willing to be part of a group effort to fight a war, to prepare yourself for even greater sacrifices ahead.
Irving Oblas never left the States during World War II, but his voluminous correspondence with his wife offers invaluable descriptions of daily life in the Navy. In August 1945, on his way to California to be shipped out to Japan, Oblas mailed his wife a postcard from every stop his troop train made. He made it to San Francisco in time for V-J Day and served out his hitch decommissioning ships in the port of Bremerton, Washington. (featured on pages 61, 68, 87, 96, 97-99, 102-105)
“The barracks are not home sweet home, but a place for rest from exhaustion..”
– Ben Snyder
"When I wrote you about getting married five days after I come home..."
Denton W. Crocker's story
(pages 67, 72-74, 75, 88, 100-101)
"...I'm wondering if you will find me changed..."
Ben M. Snyder's story
(pages 62, 75-76, 91, 92, 95, 97)
"Together we could have done lots more than we ever did singly."
Malcolm Harvey Stilson's story
(pages 63, 68, 71, 91)
"Above all, I prayed that I would live to make you happy."
Tracy A. Sugarman's story
(pages 76, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85)
"There were 'Dear Jane' as well as 'Dear John' letters."
Marie Brand Voltzke's story
(pages 62, 78, 100)
