Survivors of the 1941 Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor have long been the focus of a remembrance ceremony held each year on the military base’s waterfront.
But presently only 12 remain alive — all centenarians — and this year none is able to make the journey to Hawaii to observe the occasion, set for Sunday.
That implies no attendee will possess firsthand recollections of serving during the assault, which killed over 2,300 troops and propelled the US into World War 2. The alteration is not unexpected and is a progression of an established pattern. As veterans pass away, their relatives and the general public are increasingly turning to alternative methods of learning about the attack.
“The notion of not having a survivor present for the first time — I just, I don’t know — it saddened my spirit in a way I cannot articulate,” stated Kimberlee Heinrichs, whose 105-year-old father Ira “Ike” Schab had to withdraw plans to arrive from Oregon after falling unwell.
Survivors have been in attendance every year in recent awareness except for 2020, when the Navy and the National Park Service closed the observance to the general populace due to coronavirus pandemic health hazards.
“I can still witness what was occurring.”
The observance commences with a moment of stillness at 7:55 a.m., the identical time the assault commenced on December 7, 1941. Solemn customs ensue.
Fighter planes soar above in “missing comrade formation,” wherein one jet breaks away to represent those lost. Surviving personnel lay wreaths to honor the departed, although active duty personnel have taken over this task in recent years. Survivors stand to salute active duty seamen who in turn salute as their vessel moves past the USS Arizona Memorial, which rests above the submerged frame of the warship sunk in the engagement.
Roughly 2,000 survivors attended the 50th anniversary function in 1991. A small number have appeared in recent decades. Last year, only two managed to arrive. That is out of an estimated 87,000 personnel stationed on Oahu that day.
Numerous survivors were cheerful despite the solemnity, glad to reconnect with old companions and pose for pictures. Even so, distressing memories were seldom distant from their thoughts.
In 2023, Harry Chandler looked across the sea while recounting to an Associated Press correspondent how he was raising the banner at a mobile infirmary in the slopes overlooking the base when he observed Japanese aircraft fly in and release ordnance. Chandler and his fellow Navy hospital assistants jumped into vehicles to aid the wounded.
He spoke of observing the Arizona detonate, and of hearing sailors confined on the overturned USS Oklahoma frantically rapping on their vessel’s plating to summon aid. He aided in tending to Oklahoma sailors after crews carved openings into the battleship.
“I can still witness what was occurring,” Chandler remarked. He passed away the subsequent year at a retirement residence in Tequesta, Florida.
Lessons from the past
The bombardment has long carried diverse significances for diverse individuals, the historian Emily S. Rosenberg noted in her publication “A Date Which Will Endure: Pearl Harbor in American Memory.”
Some posit it underscores the necessity for a well-prepared military and an alert foreign posture. To some it recalls then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt administration’s “incompetence or concealment” and the unjust blaming of the armed forces. Others emphasize the “betrayal” by Japan or the valiant deeds of individual service members, she stated.
When queried what he wished Americans to grasp about Pearl Harbor, Chandler replied: “Be vigilant.”
“We ought to have understood that was going to happen. The intel must be superior,” he asserted.
Lou Conter, who was the Arizona’s final living survivor when he died last year at 102, informed the AP in 2019 he favored attending to recall those who perished.
“It’s perpetually beneficial to return and express reverence to them and bestow upon them the highest accolades they merit,” Conter remarked.
Heinrichs’ father has been six times since 2016. The former tuba player on the USS Dobbin likes to go not only to recall those slain but also in place of his deceased band associates; his three siblings who served in World War II; and the now-departed Pearl Harbor veterans he has encountered.
Before the veterans are gone
Retired National Park Service Pearl Harbor chronicler Daniel Martinez commented the situation mirrors the early 20th century when Civil War veterans were passing away in mounting quantities. Awareness increased that soon they would be unable to share their accounts of Gettysburg and other conflicts, he observed.
Martinez realized something comparable might occur with Pearl Harbor veterans and documented their oral accounts. During a 1998 gathering, he conducted discussions 12 hours daily for three days. The Park Service currently possesses almost 800 interviews, mostly on video.
The Park Service exhibits some in its Pearl Harbor museum and intends to incorporate more following refurbishments, stated David Kilton, the agency’s Pearl Harbor exposition, education, and visitor services director.
The Library of Congress holds archives from 535 Pearl Harbor veterans, including discussions, correspondence, photographs, and journals. Over 80% are accessible online. They form part of the library’s Veterans History Project of firsthand recollections from servicemembers who served from World War I onward. Many were recorded by relatives, Eagle Scouts, and other amateurs keen on documenting heritage.
The Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors conduct talks in schools and participate in processions to disseminate the narratives of their families. The California branch has enlisted six new members this year, including two great-grandchildren of veterans.
“When they are all gone, we will still be present,” said Deidre Kelley, the organization’s chairperson. “And it is our intention to preserve the recollection as long as we exist.”
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