a little family history......
Veteran's Day was last Thursday, so I was reading this email my Grandpa had sent us a while back about when he was drafted to fight in the Korean Way. Both of my Grandpas were drafted- I can't even imagine- and my Grandmas had to just wait for them while they were at war- also unimaginable. I'm so grateful for their service and their sense of duty. My Grandpas are both very kind and loving people and came back to raise some pretty great families.
I was teasing my brother Chris about "not counting" to get a free discount meal at- I think Chili's?- for Veteran's Day because he wasn't really in the armed forces, but, now I feel bad so I should include him too. Chris is going to med school in Maryland through the Air Force, so every so often he has to report for some type of basic training and wear a uniform, learn protocol and pass fitness tests. Chris is also going to be spend the first 7 years out of med school placed wherever the Air Force needs him to be. He'll be doing a great service and he is actually excited about all of it.
Chris in his camo and aviators
Chris at his white coat ceremony
The bearded guy is my oldest brother Jordan, who's studying for his doctorate in Philosophy of -I think Epistemology?- at Princeton. Doesn't he look the part?
Chris with my parents in his cool uniform
Below is the email that my Grandpa DeLange sent the fam- it's pretty cool- it's his perspective on everything and he has a great attitude.
Dear Family and Friends,
An article in today’s paper reminded me, of all people, of the Forgotten War, sometimes referred to the Korean Police Action. The war started 60 years ago today and I decided that you should all hear a little about it and give a little thought to the ramifications of that war. I and 3 of my friends were walking the streets of San Diego on a vacation when we saw the headlines on the newspapers. Little did I know then about how that would change my life big time. During the next two years I went to Weber State and graduated and like most other Americans didn’t pay much attention to what was going on in Korea, except when President Truman relieved General MacArthur of his command in Korea. In retrospect I was trying to remember if I was upset at that action, or fully in favor of it. I think I was in favor, but hated to see it happen because MacArthur had been such an important figure in the Pacific War just 6 or 7 years earlier.
In early 1952 Jo Ann and I were talking about marriage and making plans for me to be an attorney practicing business law. I took the physical and psychological tests to be a pilot in the Utah Air National Guard where they would put me through the University of Utah while I served with them as a F-100 (or F-86) pilot. Jo Ann went down with me to Salt Lake to sign up and I did sign up, but, as I was walking out the door the officer said, “wait a minute, how tall are you?” I was 6 foot 4 inches and as it turned out, that was too tall for the F-100 so he tried to talk me into being an air force pilot for the big bombers, or transports. We, Jo Ann and I, didn’t want to do that, so went back to our plans which didn’t include being drafted, but I was drafted and went in the Army in August of 1952. The worst of the fighting in Korea was over when I got there in February 1953 (in a band, if you’ve forgotten). There were a few big battles at the end of the war when the Chinese tried to push the front line a little further South, but it all ended in about July 1953. I served in Korea for almost a year after that and didn’t come home until April 1954.
I’ve seen some documentaries on Korea in which even some of the service personnel said they wondered why they were there and maybe at the time under terrible conditions they were justified in seeing it that way. I didn’t then, or now, question our presence there and my part of it. All you have to do is look at the growth in South Korea versus the lack of growth in North Korea to see what giving the South freedom meant. I think I sent a picture to most of you of Korea taken from the satellites at night and I can’t find it now, but the North is almost black and the South is bright like the populated areas in America. Another visual that is pretty meaningful in my eyes. We were in Las Vegas with Brett and Kiley for one of her soccer tournaments and we were at the outdoor Pirate show at one of the casinos and Brett started talking to some Asians who were Koreans. I asked them where and mentioned that I had been there during the Korean war. The young ones sort of let it slide, but the older gentleman put his hand on my shoulder and thanked me for my service. He said, “the young don’t really realize what the Americans did for us and our freedom, but I do.” I thought at the time that it was a sad situation where something that major wasn’t a big part of their history classes and their knowledge base. I hope that our family will always honor this country and the men and women who served in the military.
Lots of love,
Dad/Grandpa/Tal
My Grandpa DeLange trying on his old army coat :)
