Eighty years later, remembering Pearl Harbor attacks
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Dec. 5—New Hampshire will pause this week to remember and reflect on the attack that plunged the United States into a world war 80 years ago.
Nine young service members from the Granite State were killed the morning of Dec. 7, 1941 when Japan attacked the U.S. military bases at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, according to Daniel Beliveau, commander of the Manchester Veterans Council.
Beliveau will be the master of ceremonies at a remembrance ceremony today at 11:45 a.m. at Manchester's Arms Park.
As he has every year for the past decade, Beliveau, a retired Army major, will read the names of the fallen from New Hampshire and where they died that terrible morning:
Ensign Edward B. Cloues, USN, of Warner, USS Arizona; Seaman 1st Class David L. Crossett, USN, of Manchester, USS Utah; Yeoman 2nd Class Bruce R. Edmunds, USN, of Epsom, USS Arizona; Pvt. Carlton H. Hartford (town unknown), Hickam Field; Fireman 3rd Class Edwin C. Hopkins, USN, of Keene, USS Oklahoma; Pvt. Joseph Jedrysik of Manchester, Hickam Field; Pfc. Orvell Vaniel King Jr., USMC, (town unknown) USS Nevada; Seaman 1st Class Joseph S. Rozmus, USN, of Manchester, USS Arizona; and Pvt. Maurice J. St. Germain, USAAF, of Manchester, Hickam Field.
Members of Manchester West High School's band and ROTC will participate, as will an honor guard from local American Legion posts. Beliveau will read a portion of the speech given by President Franklin D. Roosevelt after the attack, which killed 2,403 U.S. personnel and destroyed or damaged 19 U.S. Navy ships.
The public is invited to attend the brief ceremony.
On Tuesday, the actual anniversary, the New Hampshire Veterans Home in Tilton will hold a solemn ceremony to mark the day.
"We are veterans here, and we have to look to our history to make sure that we don't repeat it," said Margaret LaBrecque, commandant of the home.
No dignitaries will attend in person, but many have sent videos and letters to share with residents.
About 25 of the home's current residents are from the World War II generation, LaBrecque said. Six are 99 years old and well remember the attack on Pearl Harbor and the years of war that followed.
LaBrecque said she thinks about those young soldiers and sailors who served, teenagers then, now in their 90s. For that generation, she said, "We want to make sure that they know how heartfelt we find that day."
Former resident Walter Borchert, who as a young sailor survived the Pearl Harbor attack, died in 2019 at 98, just a week after the annual ceremony was held at the home.
In Manchester, Beliveau, a veteran of Desert Storm and the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, said it's important to remember what happened, all these decades later.
"Just to keep it in everybody's minds," he said. "To keep this from happening again."
In the most poignant moment of the annual ceremony, a wreath is tossed into the waters of the Merrimack River.
Beliveau explained the significance of the military tradition: "The waters are all connected, the oceans and the rivers. So the wreath will float down the river to the ocean, where the sailors are buried in the (USS) Arizona."
It's important to let the older generation — veterans and civilians alike — know that their sacrifices are not forgotten, LaBrecque said.
Back then, the nation was unified in supporting those called to serve, she said.
"Everyday members of society stood behind our military and gave every little thing they had, whether it was aluminum or steel or doing without," she said.
After Pearl Harbor, civilians in New Hampshire manned fire towers to keep an eye on the skies and the seas in case more attacks were coming, she said.
In the end, LaBrecque said, "Those everyday acts are what made us overcome that attack."
"Everyday Americans banded together," LaBrecque said. "And I hope that that can happen again, with the things that are going on today."
On Friday, President Joe Biden issued a proclamation marking Tuesday as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.
"I encourage all Americans to reflect on the courage shown by our brave warriors that day and remember their sacrifices," Biden said. "I ask us all to give sincere thanks and appreciation to the survivors of that unthinkable day."
Biden also called for the flag to be flown at half-staff on Tuesday "in honor of those American patriots who died as a result of their service at Pearl Harbor."
