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[Uplifting Music]

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[Uplifting Music]

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76 years ago on September 2, 1945

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World War II ended on the deck of an

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American warship , US General Douglas

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Macarthur accepted Japan's formal

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surrender aboard the US battleship

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Missouri . Where he said the hope of

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all mankind that from this solemn

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occasion a better world shall emerge

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out of the blood and carnage of the

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past . World War II claimed the lives

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of an estimated 60-80 million people ,

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approximately 3% of the world's

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population . Today we remember the hope

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of General Macarthur , the hope of a

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world founded upon faith and

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understanding , dedicated to the

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dignity of man and the fulfillment of

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his most cherished wish for freedom ,

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tolerance and justice . Today we pay

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tribute to the greatest generation To

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those watching from home who fought for

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global peace . 76 years ago , we thank

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you for your sacrifices to our nation

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and to those watching who are a little

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younger , we hope today's program will

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educate you on a monumental part of our

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national history and inspire you to

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remain strong through the challenges we

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face today .

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The war had been raging in Europe Asia

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and Africa since September 1939 . But

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the United States remained neutral ,

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serving instead as an arsenal of

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democracy by providing military

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supplies to the Allied powers . That

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changed on December 7 , 1941 when the

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Japanese Empire attacked the US Naval

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Base at Pearl Harbor . No matter how

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long it may take us to overcome this

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premeditated invasion , The American

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people in their righteous might will

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win through to absolute

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Germany and Italy declared war on the

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United States . Four days later in the

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Pacific during the winter and spring of

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1942 , isolated American garrisons in

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the Philippines , Guam and wake island

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fell to the Japanese as America

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mobilized for global war . Soon the U .

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S . Navy demonstrated that carriers

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were king after the famed Doolittle

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raid on Tokyo and the success of

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victories at Coral Sea and Midway

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helped turn the tide of the war . In

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the pacific . The combined efforts of

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the U . S . Navy , Marine Corps and

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army began a multi year island hopping

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campaign . Guadalcanal in august using

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air , naval and ground forces to push

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the Japanese back in the pacific In the

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Battle of the Atlantic in 1942 and 43 ,

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Allied naval and merchant ships fought

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off German submarines while bringing

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much needed supplies and troops to

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England As the Army Air Forces attacked

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strategic targets in Europe . The

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campaigns in North Africa Sicily and

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Italy , from late 1942 to May of

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1944 forced the Germans to retreat

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across the Mediterranean Sea into the

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heart of Italy . The June 6th ,

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1944 D day landings at Normandy opened

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a second front in western Europe ,

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giving the allies a firm foothold ,

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allowing them to advance rapidly

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through France and Belgium in December ,

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The Germans launched a counter

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offensive through the Ardennes . To

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break the Allied lines known as the

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Battle of the bulge . It was contained

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but slow to allied progress . The

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winter of 1945 saw the allies advancing

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to the Rhine River . Finally crossing

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it on March seven after capturing an

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intact bridge at Remagen , The allies

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swept through Germany as the Russians

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entered Berlin at the end of April and

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the Germans surrendered on May seven .

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As the war ended , the horrific

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evidence of the holocaust was

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discovered at camps all over Europe .

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In the Pacific Allied forces returned

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to the Philippines in October 1944 .

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While the largest naval battle in

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history was five at Leyte Gulf ,

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resulting in a significant Japanese

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defeat . Allied operations in the

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China Burma India theater forced the

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Japanese to retreat through China and

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opened up vital supply lines for

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Chinese forces . After successive

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victories in the battles at Iwo Jima ,

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the Philippines and Okinawa , the

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allies prepared for an invasion of the

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Japanese home islands . However , after

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the Atomic bombings at Hiroshima and

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Nagasaki on August six and 9 , The

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Japanese surrendered on August 15 ,

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1945 . General Macarthur and

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representatives of all the allied

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nations signed the surrender documents

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on the USs Missouri in Tokyo Bay on

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September 2nd 1945 formally bringing an

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end to the largest war in human history

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today , we'll hear the voices of the

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greatest generation and their

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experiences during some of the most

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pivotal moments in history , fewer as

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pivotal as d day . It was the largest

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amphibious operation in history , The

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allies landed more than 300,000 troops

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in Normandy France within a week , Link

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Harner was one of them .

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, In the 1920s and 30s , most

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Americans believe the nation's

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interests were best served by staying

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out of foreign conflicts . Yet with its

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surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on

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December 7th 1941 the empire of Japan

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thrust the United States into world war

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two The next day from the capital .

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President Franklin . D . Roosevelt made

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a battle cry for freedom and a national

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call to arms . 33 minutes later ,

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Congress declared war on Japan

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on the first day of the war , our

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commander in Chief to find exactly how

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the last day would end . With

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confidence in our armed forces ,

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With the un bounding determination of

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our people , we will gain

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the inevitable triumph so help us . God !

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Born in Pottstown Pennsylvania . Link

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Harner was just 16 years old when

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President Roosevelt interrupted the

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school day with an appeal to Congress

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at that moment , Link knew he would

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join the war effort , drafted into the

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United States Army . In April 1943 Link

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would find himself storming Gold beach

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on D day . He went on to serve in the

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liberation of paris Battle of the Bulge

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and supported patents Third Army . 3.5

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years after he heard the President's

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speech link harder , would end his

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wartime service with the liberation of

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Pilsen Czechoslovakia On May 7th , 1945

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we have personal freedoms in America ,

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we can be what we want to be . We can

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do what we want to do . I know

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sometimes I think maybe we brag too

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much about America being the best , but

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by golly it is learn all you can about

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our country , how it was formed , why

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it was formed and you'll appreciate

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America more and also serve your

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country . It wasn't until three years

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after the end of World War two that

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President Harry s Truman signed the

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Women's Armed Services Integration Act

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into law . But that didn't stop women

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from volunteering and serving in the

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war effort . Let's hear from the first

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woman and nurse to be the army's

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surgeon general and how the nurse corps

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served on the battlefield . I'm

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Lieutenant general . Patricia Horror ho

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When the United States entered World

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War II , American women in uniform were

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members of the Army and Navy Nurse

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Corps . That number rose to 59,000

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nurses . By 1945 , nurses served in

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every theater of operation and in every

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imaginable condition healing the

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wounded and saving hundreds of

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thousands of lives . These women paved

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the way for others to join the military .

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Eventually , each service branch open

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to women and by the end of the war over

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350,000 women were American

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service uniforms . Born in Philadelphia ,

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the daughter of Italian immigrants .

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Regina Benson served as an army

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surgical nurse in the pacific theater

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setting up emergency field hospitals in

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Okinawa . The number of injured

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soldiers kept her working to save lives

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around the clock . Each soldier in her

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care could have been one of her four

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brothers . Your country comes first and

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then your own problems . Freedom is

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worth writing for because we can and we

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are our own bosses and we can do what

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we , I think it's important .

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Today service members deployed around

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the world come from every corner of the

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country . Our shared mission is what

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brings people together who are diverse

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in ideas , backgrounds , cultures and

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experiences . But it wasn't always that

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way . The Chief of staff of the Air

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Force tells us about service in a time

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of segregation and how a group of men

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changed the course of history .

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I'm General CQ Brown in many ways . The

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modern civil rights movement began

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during world war two . The axis prove a

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great threat to democracy worldwide

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amid the largest conflict in human

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history , United States . Son of the

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call to every American . As each

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service moved to bring minorities into

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previously restricted missionaries .

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Perhaps none became more storage than

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its Tuskegee airman . A group of 992

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black fighter and bomber pod rewarded

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Europe's defense . He's Aaron gained a

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reputation as some of the fiercest

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fighters in American history along with

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other service members of all colors ,

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genders and backgrounds . They're

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terrorism in the air , helped lay the

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groundwork for President Truman who

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signed an executive order establishing

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equality in the armed services in 1948

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Charles McGee flew 136 combat missions

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with the government over Germany

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Austria and the Balkans Eventually

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rising to the rank of Brigadier General .

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His career would span three decades

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through the wars in Korea and Vietnam

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totaling 409 fighter combat missions

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record among the highest of any air

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force fighter pilot . Geno McGee ,

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I want to thank you so much for your

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service . It's because of men and women

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just like you and the ski government

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that I have the opportunity to become

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the chief of staff in the United States

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Air Force . Thank you sir . What

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freedom means to me is the fact

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that although there were those who said

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I couldn't do something because of my

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happenstance of birth , freedom gave

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provided the opportunity to serve

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improve that . It's not just an idea

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that for somebody tell you can't do

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something , it also requires that the

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endeavor from yourself that yes , I can .

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By December 1944 , the allies

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were confident too confident In a

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surprise counterattack called the

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Battle of the Bulge . The Nazis struck

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back with 450,000 troops in Belgium

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Luxembourg and eastern France frank

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Cohn . He and his family had fled

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Germany to avoid persecution . As Jews

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Hitler aimed to split American and

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British forces capture Antwerp and Sue

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for peace . The Americans bore the

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worst of it , but ultimately prevented

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the Germans from capturing much needed

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supplies and road networks halting the

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Nazis advance on Christmas Eve , 1944

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The Battle of the Bulge claimed the

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lives of more than 19,000 Americans ,

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making it the largest and bloodiest

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battle of World War II Frank . Cohn was

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born in Breslau Germany in 1925 . His

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father owned a sporting goods store and

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his family lived a comfortable middle

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class life until Adolf Hitler came to

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power to avoid persecution as Jews .

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The Cones fled to America in 1938 , But

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just five years later , 18 year old

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Frank Cone would be drafted into the

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army and sent back to his native

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Germany Because Frank spoke fluent

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German , he was assigned to a small

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intelligence team of two officers . He

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soon found himself caught in Germany's

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last offensive of the war . The Battle

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of the Bulge Frank continued to serve

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through the end of the war and stayed

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in the army until he retired in 1978 as

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a Colonel . It was my obligation to my

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country that is something that was

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ingrained in me as I learned it coming

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out of this dictatorship where I was

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prosecuted and persecuted and I would

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not have survived even and here I am

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living free . There's pride , there's

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pride in here because it's my country

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capturing Iwo Jima was crucial to the

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allies . The US needed the island's

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airfields . The last surviving medal of

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honor recipient to have fought in the

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battle of Iwo Jima , Hershel Woody

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Williams was there 76 years ago ,

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Iwo Jima . Few events in the history of

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military battle have done more to

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cement the reputation and standing in

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the public's mind of the United States

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Marine Corps . The raising of the

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American flag on Mount Suribachi would

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inspire a monument representing the

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fighting spirit of the marines ready to

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sacrifice all for their country . There

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were many examples of that sacrifice on

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February 23 , 1945 . Here's

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one that stands out . The marines were

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trying to break through an area of

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reinforced concrete bunkers when

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corporal Hershel Woody Williams leapt

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into action . He repeatedly rushed

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forward to take out one bunker after

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another using demolition charges and

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flamethrowers while under constant

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enemy fire and covered by only three

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riflemen , his actions allowed his unit

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to break through the heavily defended

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strong point and reach their objective .

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If you love America truly , you are

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going to have the instinct and the

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desire in some way to serve your

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country . If you don't then you're

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going to find some way to go in the

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other direction .  , so

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service is within all of us .

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More than 27,000 American military

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personnel were held as prisoners of war

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in the Pacific after the allied victory .

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It took months for all of the POWs to

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be located and safely brought home .

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Dan Crowley was one of those POWs When

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the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on

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December 7 , 1941 . They also attacked

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the Philippines then an American

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territory . For nearly five months ,

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American and Philippine forces held the

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last two allied positions in southeast

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Asia , the Bataan peninsula and the

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island of Keurig adore on the peninsula .

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The U . S . Was heavily outnumbered by

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Japanese forces , pummeled by their

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superior air power fighting with First

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World War weapons and lacking

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reinforcements or supplies . American

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leadership finally surrendered on April

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9 , 1942 . It was the largest American

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surrender since Harper's ferry . As a

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result , the imperial Japanese army

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captured nearly 100,000 soldiers and

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noncombatants . The Japanese forced

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their captives to March more than 60

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miles to a prisoner of war camp . Along

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the way , summary executions , beatings

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and a lack of food or water resulted in

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thousands of deaths . The Bataan death

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march became known as one of the worst

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war crimes of the 20th century . At 18

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years old army private dan Crowley

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Nichols field in the Philippines when

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the Japanese attacked on December 7th ,

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he and others work to defend the

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airfield but were ultimately

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overwhelmed . Crowley escaped in the

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night by sailing 25 miles across Manila

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Bay to the Bataan Peninsula where

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they're fierce fighting held the

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Japanese advance until the United

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States surrendered . Bataan in April

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Crowley once again escaped by swimming

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three miles to Keurig adore defending

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that island with the marines until it

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too was surrendered held by the

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Japanese as a prisoner of war , Crowley

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endured horrific conditions and forced

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labor until his liberation on September

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4th 1945 . I saw a lot of the

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best is the follow his bed

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had this perpetrated on them . I

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don't desire to surrender to it at me

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was a threat of massacre of the

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commanding officer was enough for him

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to say I've got to save as many as I

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can . Courage means to me never to give

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Up . Thank you for joining us on this

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commemoration of V . J . Day , the end

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of World War Two and the heroic acts of

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a generation . They showed the world

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that no matter the sacrifice required .

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Americans will face any challenge with

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grit , ingenuity and a can do attitude

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for more inspiring stories on World War

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Two visit defense dot gov .

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