W.W.II was not his first war. My father joined the Army in April of 1917, just a few days before our Nation was fully involved in W.W. I. He was only 14 1/2 years old. So anxious was he to get into the big "show," that he lied about his age to the draft board. He was assigned to the 83rd Field Artillery Army Band. Most of his enlistment was spent stateside, but in Nov. 1918, just a few days before the signing of the Armistice, his Unit arrived in Brest France. They were the official bodyguards to President Wilson during his visit to Brest. Upon my father's return to the United States, he reenlisted for another 2 years, and by the time his second enlistment was up he had attained the rank of Staff Sergeant and assistant Band Director. He was just 18 years old.

For the next 20 years, he pursued a professional musical career. He was director of the Douglas County Concert Band, and taught at Heinline Music Conservatory in Roseburg, OR. He played in the Portland Symphony Orchestra and many of the popular theaters and clubs in the Portland area. He was director of the Portland Police Auxiliary Drum and Bugle Corps, and taught a Hills Military Academy for Boys. In the mid 30's, a friend, General George White of the Oregon National Guard, asked him to join the Guard and recruit as many of his professional musician friends as he could. The General wanted a really fine Army Band, and he got it.

On Sept. 16,1940, the ONG, now part of the 41st Div. was called into Federal service. They were sent to the Pacific in Feb. 1942, arriving in Australia 40 days later, then on to New Guinea in April of 1943.

I've been told that the Army didn't quite know what to do with their regimental Bands during combat. I believe that my father was made a Provost Marshall, in charge of guarding prisoners and field headquarters. They were in New Guinea for several months during the spring and summer of 1943, during which time they engaged the enemy from Buna to Salamaua, one battle lasting 76 continuous days in the terrible jungle conditions. The men of the 41st Div. 162 Inf. Band were involved in combat, earning the Combat Infantrymen's Badge.

The jungle was as formidable an enemy as the Japanese. Poisonous snakes, carnivorous insects, disease, dysentery and the smoldering jungle heat were their constant companions.

After the victory at Salamaua, the 41st Div. was sent back to Australia for retraining, resupplying and rest. While on a 2 week furlough, my father became very depressed and was admitted to the 118th General Hospital in Sydney in a psychotic state. After three days, it was decided to board him to the US for treatment, but before it could be accomplished, he took his own life. He had become a psychological causality of war. He was 42 years old.

I was a child of three when my daddy left for Australia, and five when he died there. I have no real memories of him, only imagined ones fashioned from old faded photographs. My mother and grandmother could not speak of him without becoming very emotional, so they just said nothing. Later when I started asking questions, my mother would say "your father was a wonderfully talented musician who loved you very much." After that she would "cloud up" and turn away. I soon stopped asking the questions that brought her so much pain. Since joining AWON, I have begun to ask the questions that I have needed to know the answers to for half a century. I have received detailed information from the NPRC. I have found the courage to talk to my Aunt and Uncle about my father. The man I did not now, and therefore could not grieve for, is coming to life for me. I have found out that he intended to adopt my half sister Betty Ann. He was called away before it could be accomplished. He was a loving and devoted son. In his letters to his mother, it is clear that he thought of himself as the family patriarch. His father had been an invalid and had died, and as eldest son he had assumed much of the family responsibilities at a young age.

My Aunt told me that he "loved all people" A former 41st Div. Band member told me that he treated his men with great respect, calling them "fine musicians and gentlemen." He encouraged them to call him "Jack."

As a child, I was not told the truth about my father's suicide. My mother thought it best to protect me. In 1973, I found out quite by accident that he did not die of malaria as I had been told. It was painful to learn the facts of his death, but it strengthened my resolve to try to contact the men he spent his last days on earth with, the "Gentlemen of the 41st Div.,162 Inf. Band."

After years of not knowing how to start, and with the help of AWON and the Internet, I have made contact. I have corresponded with, and met former band members who not only knew him, but considered him to be a close friend. One even sent a picture of me at the age of three, taken at Ft. Lewis, WA, before they were sent overseas. I have attended the 41st Div. Bands reunions, and have been welcomed with open arms by it's members and their wives. I continue to have a wonderful and affectionate relationship with several of the men who knew my father well. It has been so much more than I ever hoped for, or dreamed possible. My heart will be ever grateful to these fine men for their service and sacrifice.

I've always missed my father very much. The hole in my heart has never been filled with the love only a daddy can give. I wish I had known him.

"I Love You Daddy"