Woody Byrd USS Sennet and member of the Arkansas Submarine Veterans of WWII -Diamond Chapter sailed on his last patrol the last week of October 2008.
My heroes . . . The Submarine Veterans of World War Two by John (Gumba) Carcioppolo, May 12, 2007 First presented at the US Submarine Veterans of WWII North East Regional Convention 2007 (Please forgive me for adding commas and periods to your most thoughtful poem to allow it to fit in this space.)
As you take her down, and take her deep And level off at 400 feet.
Remember well those who went before who rest in peace on the ocean floor.Their boats rust in silence, and yearn to tell their story of how the crew died defending Old Glory. It's up to us to always remember how you fought the war after 7 December"The Submarines are all we have left" it was told. As boats departed on war patrols. It was to the Submarine Force that we turned after the Pacific Fleet was sunk and burned. While the fleet rebuilt you held the lines and kept sinking targets time after time. From Pearl out to Midway and the Sea of Japan you all were committed down to a man. Slowly but surely and one by one. You sank the ships with the Rising Sun. All enemy ships you did attack. Sadly one in five boats did not come back.You cleared the seas of enemy shipping. And their mighty warships were also slipping beneath the waves to the ocean floor to attack Americans never more.You did great things in that long war, as you filled the history books with your lore. If things went well a broom you’d fly. But if things went wrong shipmates would wait and cry.You won this war with nerves of steel and veins of ice. But our Submarine Force paid a heavy price. It started with SEA LION in late forty one and ended with BULLHEAD before it was done. PERCH, TRITON and KETE to name a few. And don’t forget others like TROUT and WAHOO. Names like Morton and Dealey were some of the best. But just as important are all the rest. Lockwood said "they went down fighting"to depth charge attacks that were always frightening. We lost 52 boats during World War Two. Over 3600 men, but none of you. You are the ones who did survive. And have always kept their memories alive.For 60 years you have tolled the bell. For all your shipmates who fought like hell. And now as you all turn gray and old. We will tell the stories that we’ve been told.We have the watch and will always remember the Submariners who served after 7 December. We will toll the boats and tell the story of our Brothers of the Phin who went down in glory. Today as our Submarines put out to sea. We reflect on your impact on history. On every boat and on every day, we’ll always remember you paved the way for you are our heroes and there is no doubt living up to your standards is what it’s about. When we wear our dolphins with pride on our chest it’s because of you that we are the best. Like the Marines you are the Proud and the few who served your country in a Submarine Crew you are shining examples of our great Nation and reverently called the Greatest Generation. This poem is my humble tribute to you. My heroes . . . The Submarine Veterans of World War Two (Forward by George Arnold USS Sea Fox)
George McMinn served on the USS Haddo (SS-255) during World War II.
