Colton+and+Christian

__Biographical Narrative: Walter J. Sherman__ Colton Lawrence and Christian Stahl Mr. Walter Sherman was born on February 26, 1935 in the town of Nyack, New York. He was the oldest of five kids in his family. He joined the Marines with his friend Fred Smith when he was 19 years old. He then went to Parris Island for bootcamp. While Sherman was in high school, he worked at a local grocery store called the A&P. He played baseball and basketball while studying and enjoying his life to the fullest as a young man. He enlisted in the Marine Corps the fall after he graduated high school in 1954. His friend Fred Smith had plans to join the Marine Corp before Sherman did. After giving Smith a ride to Elizabeth, New Jersey for enlistment, he decided that it would be a good idea for him to join too. He thought the Marine Corps would fit him because it was a good branch of service, and he enjoyed teamwork because of his sports background. Parris Island was a different way of life than he was used to. The discipline wasn’t a problem for him because he was used to having to follow directions for sports that he played growing up. The most challenging part of Parris Island for him was the structure where every hour of his day was planned. He was used to structure with his family life and school but he was also used to being able to have some free time to himself to do what he wanted to do. After Parris Island boot camp Mr. Sherman did advanced combat training at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. Then after Camp Lejeune he went to Quantico for a Platoon Leaders Course (PLC’s). They first taught him about tanks, mostly the M47 and M48 tanks. Then they taught him how to teach people about tanks so he could be a tank instructor.Going to instructor school and being an instructor would help Mr. Sherman with some of the jobs he had as a civilian. Besides advanced combat training at Camp Lejeune, another type of specialized training that Sherman experienced was advanced cold weather training. During the winter, the Chosin Reservoir caused frostbite, and other health problems due to the extremely cold weather. Sherman spent ten days in the High Sierra Mountains of California. The men walked up the mountain for six days and down the mountian for four days while learning how to adapt to cold climates, and use special cold weather equiptment. Such things that they learned included how to walk in snowshoes with heavy weight on their backs, how to live in snowholes, and how to adjust their snowgear as the temperature changed from 10 to 15 degrees farenheit during the day, to temperatures ranging far below zero during the night. After all of the training, he was sent to Okinawa Japan. He was there for a total of 14 months. He went there with the 9th Marines, 3rd Marine Division. However, having an athletic background, Mr. Sherman played baseball on the 9th Marines, 3rd Marine Division team and traveled around the Middle East to play baseball games. He was expected to report to games on time, play baseball to the best of his ability, then do other duties whenever they were required. It was considered an honor to play a sport for a Marine division. Sherman became good friends with a number of men that he was playing ball, or racking with. He really enjoyed this duty. After being stationed in Okinawa, Mr. Sherman requested to be a tank instructor in three cities in New Jersey, his home state. He was assigned to Lakehurst, New Jersey for a short time, which is where he finished his active duty in the United States military. He served in the military for eight years. Three years active duty and five years inactive. If the fighting would have resumed, he would have been called back to active duty. Since he was never called back he never was in a battle and did not witness any casualties or combat. He got out of active duty in 1957. After his duty, he was accepted into Syracuse University. However, Mr. Sherman felt overwhelmed at Syracuse. The discipline that he had been used to from being in the service was not present at the university. After talking to his father, Sherman decided that he would drop out of college and find a job back home in November of 1957. He began playing softball for a very talented championship team in New Jersey. The team played around 65 to 85 games a year. He would soon after quit playing softball to focus on his business career. Sherman began in the field of consumer finance and banking. He then had the opportunity to go into residential real estate in 1972. Sherman began working for the Union County Trust Company in Linden, New Jersey, and Fidelity Union Trust Company as a banker. As a real estate agent, he worked for a company called Bariton Crane out of Liberty Corner, then for Wikerd Realtors as a regional vice president. Mr. Sherman and his wife Lynn retired in September, 1990. They had four children together, and now have nine grandchildren. Sherman considers himself a very fortunate man and enjoys his life in Cornwall, Pennsylvania. Though he does not miss being in the military, he is very thankful that his duty went the way it did.

__Transcript__

 Colton Lawrence: Hello this is Colton Lawrence and Christian Stahl interviewing Walter John Sherman who was born on February 26, 1935. Mr. Sherman served in the Marines during the Korean War. The highest rank he earned was a Corporal. This interview is taking place in Cornwall,, Pennsylvania for the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress on Sunday, October 7, 2012.

Christian Stahl: Mr. Sherman, where and when were you born?

Mr. Walter Sherman: I was born February 26, 1935, in Nyack, New York.

Lawrence: Did you have any brothers or sisters?

Sherman: I am the oldest of five so I have two brothers and two sisters, but I am the oldest of the five of us.

Stahl: And what are your brothers’ or sisters’ names?

Sherman: My brother Mark is the second child; my brother Bill is the third, and then two sisters; Ann and Mary Rose, the baby.

Lawrence: Did you have any family members or friends that joined the military?

Sherman: Friends? Yes. Family? No.

Stahl: Did you have any jobs before you joined the military?

Sherman: While I was in high school, I worked at the local grocery store, the A&P. But basically I was just a high school fellow, studying, and playing baseball and basketball and enjoying life like hopefully all of you.

Lawrence: How did you enter the service? Enlistment?

Sherman: I enlisted in the Marine Corps at the end of high school. High school ended for me in the spring of 1954, and I joined the Marine Corps in September 1954.

Stahl: Why did you decide to join the military?

Sherman: I really didn’t have a direction that I really wanted to go clear in my mind and a good friend of mine, Fred Smith, asked me if I could give him a ride to Elizabeth, New Jersey to join the Marine Corps. I said absolutely and as I thought about it, I thought it was a good place to be so I joined with him.

Lawrence: Were you nervous about joining the Military?

Sherman: No, not at all.

Lawrence: What war did you serve in?

Sherman: I served in the Korean conflict, they called it. Fortunately the war was treading down. Just perchance in 1954, I was just fortunate enough that I wasn’t in during the time of people were shooting at us or we were shooting at them. I was just very fortunate.

Stahl: Why did you join the Marine Corps?

Sherman: Good branch of the service. Discipline never bothered me. Teamwork I liked, probably because of my sports background. And with a good friend Fred Smith going in, we happened to join together and went in at the same time.

Lawrence: Where did you go for basic training?

Sherman: Parris Island.

Stahl: What were your experiences at Parris Island like?

Sherman: It was a different way of life, that’s for sure. Every moment of our day was planned. Now growing up in the 1940s and 50s, it was an easy time as I look back at it. And going to school sort of kept a certain discipline in it, as we had in my family, my family life. But the complete discipline of every hour of everyday was different for me, but not, for whatever reason, it wasn’t difficult. Playing sports, following direction, was not a problem. I was very fortunate.

Lawrence: Were there any conditions in the camp that you had trouble adapting to?

Sherman: No, none at all.

Stahl: What division were you in?

Sherman: Well after um… It was a little different than that, as I just take a minute or two to go over that with you. This will cover probably some of the other questions that you want to do. At the end of boot camp, which lasted eight weeks, I had ten days off and I came home. Ten days before I reported to my next position. And that was at Camp Lejeune advanced combat training. So after nine days, ten days, I reported into North Carolina, Camp Lejeune ,did that training. And then from there, I was placed at Quantico, Virginia which is headquarters of the Marine Corps. And I was in PLC (Platoon Leader Courses) first in tanks, M47 and M48 tanks, and then as an instructor in the tanks. And I was there for probably about 6, 7 months. And also, School’s Group Demonstrations is the part that I was attached to. From there, you’re using the word division? Is that the word you use? Christian: Yeah, division.

Sherman: I went overseas and I ended up in Okinawa for 14 months, and that was the 9th Marines, the 3rd Marine division. However I had an athletic background, and I played ball for the 9th Marines 3rd Marine division and we traveled around the Middle East. It was really good duty. For Okinawa, it was really good duty.

Stahl: You said you played ball?

Sherman: Baseball.

Stahl: Baseball, alright.

Lawrence: How did you get along with the men in your division?

Sherman: Probably fine. I had a number of them that I was good friends with, fellows I was playing ball, fellows I was racking with. We probably had about 85 guys to a squad bay. But I was involved with guys that were in the 9th Marines band, guys playing baseball. So I had pretty good duty there. And um, I had some really good friends that I had, and some fellows that I just knew in passing, and no problems at all. Just report on time and play ball to the best of our ability and then do other duties whenever it was required.

Stahl: Where did you go for your specialized training?

Sherman: Well besides advanced combat training at Camp Lejeune, and before I went to Okinawa, because of problems in Korea, there was a phrase they referred to, and you didn’t hear of it, your fathers or your grandfathers did, the Chosin reservoir during the winter was extremely bad. The people were frostbitten, and had a lot of health problems because of that area. So we had ten days of advanced cold weather training in the High Sierras. I did not enjoy that much. I’m being honest with you. But they bussed us up there, the Marines, bussed us up there and then we walked uphill for six days and downhill for four days, and learned how to walk in snowshoes and sixty pounds on our backs. And live in snow holes and learned how to adjust our gear that we wore as it warmed up to maybe 10 or 15 degrees above zero. And then at night, quite a lot below zero. And learn how to adapt to that so that we wouldn’t become frostbitten, or frozen to death to be honest with you.

Lawrence: Was that your least favorite part about being in the service?

Sherman: Probably the least, probably the least, Colton.

Stahl: Where did they bus you to go for that training?

Sherman: Into the High Sierra Mountains of California. Now the hard part about this, after all this cold weather training, I get sent to Okinawa, where if it gets below 60 degrees or 65 degrees, it’s really unusual because it’s very hot and humid in the islands. So it was an odd situation, but that’s where I ended up.

Lawrence: What did you do as a tank instructor?

Sherman: We had to discuss for the groups coming through, and the PLT’s, the PLC’s, were Platoon Leader Courses, which were college fellows coming through to become officers in the Marine Corps and/or Navy where I was at Quantico. So we would inform them about M47, M48 tanks, what they were made up of, the fuel, what they were to do, the 90 millimeter guns, which by the way I wear two hearing aids now because of that… a little hard on the hearing. And as an instructor of that end of it in Quantico.

Lawrence: Did you witness any casualties?

Sherman: No.

Stahl: Was being a tank instructor your favorite job?

Sherman: Um, it was fine. I also had gone to instructor school. The Marine Corps sent me there. So I liked it because, to be honest, in later years, being an instructor helped me with my different jobs that I had in civilian life. So it didn’t hurt at all.

Lawrence: Did you keep in contact with anybody back home?

Sherman: I did for a few years, after I got out. I was in for three years, active duty. Total of eight years, three active, five inactive. If something had broken out, I probably would have been called back, but again fortunately for me that just didn’t happen during my time period. A few of the fellows I did, then we lost contact. I will say, this Fred Smith, who I originally went in the Marine Corps with, somehow found my wife and me in Virginia. And he was a trial lawyer, became a trial, and a judge, judge Fred Smith. And still lives out in the state of; is it Washington, babe, or Oregon I forgot now?

Mrs. Sherman: Washington.

Sherman: Yeah, state of Washington. But he was back doing some courses for American University and Georgetown University, and he looked just as good as he did as a young fellow. He had his hair, I didn’t.

Stahl: What can you tell us about your experiences in the military?

Sherman: Well, it was rather blase for me. I wasn’t Rambo or anything like that. I didn’t have a special ops that perhaps some Marines did cause you all the sudden are there and they’re gone and they’re doing something out of the ordinary. I wasn’t involved in anything like that. Being an instructor was just fine. When I came back to the United States, I requested and got Lakehurst. I’m a New Jersey boy. I grew up in New Jersey. So I requested three places in New Jersey since I was gonna be a short-timer, and I was thinking I was going to be going to college when I got out. So I got one of the places that I requested which was Lakehurst, New Jersey. And I was an MP there. And it was fine duty, it was during the later summer, because I got out in September. And I got there in I think it would probably be June, something along the nose-lines. And then the September, I went in the September of ‘54 and got out in September, ‘57. So I enjoyed that duty. That was good duty to have also.

Lawrence: What did you do during your free-time or while you were off-duty?

Sherman: Probably rested a lot. Because of the hot weather in Okinawa and the other islands where we played. We only played at night, baseball at night, because during the day it was really stifling over there. So it wasn’t unusual for us, and we had a good deal there, playing ball. We ate at different hours and we had special food. We didn’t have to get up at five or six in the morning. So you could sorta be leisurely, because you didn’t get done with your games sometimes till after eleven o’clock at night. So we had it pretty good. Could do some sightseeing but there’s not a lot to see in Okinawa. However I was able to go to Tokyo in Japan a few times and we did enjoy that, when a couple of other guys, we’d fly there for R&R, rest and rehabilitation they call it. So we got to see a lot of things in Japan. In fact, I have picture, some of them in the book that you may have seen, I don’t know.

Stahl: So you were allowed to talk to the locals, and interact with the locals while you were there?

Sherman: Yes, and they interacted with us also. Most of it was to have a few beers with the guys in a bar or some food, which you had to be careful of what you were eating over there. So, some restaurants were approved. If they weren’t approved, you didn’t eat in them because you really could get quite ill from whatever it is that they were cooking. The approved restaurants, they constantly checked them, were fine. And if you liked whatever that particular food was, it was okay, it was alright. There wasn’t many streets in Okinawa, most of it was mud. When I was there, we had one paved road, and they called it U. S. 1, U.S. number 1. Where we can either take a cab into town and back, or you could rent a motor scooter and do the same with that. But the rest of it was all muddy, so depending on how much rain we were getting, in monsoon times and all, perhaps you’ve heard about over the years. If it was dry, you would take the motor scooter, if it was wet, let the cab driver take you there, pick them up and take you back to the base.

Lawrence: How did you feel when you were traveling home?

Sherman: I don’t quite understand that question. When I was traveling home?

Lawrence: When you were finished with your duty and going back home.

Sherman: You mean a weekend at the house or something? Not when I was fully getting out?

Lawrence: Yeah.

Sherman: It was fine. When I was finishing at Quantico, Virginia, which is not that far from where we lived in New Jersey, its more than a couple of hours. But if you wore your uniform you could hitch-hike, which I think is against the law now, but it certainly wasn’t then. Somebody would always pick me up and I could get really good rides home. A couple of state troopers even gave me a ride back to my mom and dad’s house in Westfield, New Jersey, which I‘m not sure they were supposed to do. But because most of those guys had been in the service, some in the Marine Corps, they were just being nice to a young fellow in uniform. So I could do more hitchhiking and not have to take a bus or train. It was fun.

Stahl: where were you when the war ended?

Sherman: See the war ended, as far as the fighting part, just before I went in. So I wasn’t confronted with fighting over there, just I was very fortunate, very lucky. So although I come into the Korean War Conflict, I wasn’t involved in any fighting, or any. Fred Smith, my friend, or other fellows, we weren’t involved in it, just because of where we were in the far east and not in Korea, but in Japan, Okinawa, Hawaii, I spent some time in Hawaii. So that’s just the way it went.

Lawrence: How were you treated by your family and your community after your service?

Sherman: Oh just fine. That was never a problem. I wasn’t hanging around much then because within a few days, I had been accepted to Syracuse University. So I got out at the beginning of September and within three or four days, I’m up at Syracuse University, try to go to school. And I was overwhelmed. I think that there was more people at Syracuse then there were at the Marine Corps. It was just overwhelming to me. And the discipline that I had from the service and all was not showing up at Syracuse University when I was there. So I wasn’t, I didn’t really like it that much. And around November, at about sixteen below zero, I call my dad and say dad I’m working hard up here. It’s not working out. I really don’t think I should be wasting money in going to school here. He said why don’t you come home and get a job? And I did. And for me it worked out fine. I’m very lucky again. I wasn’t afraid to work. I just didn’t like the way it was going at Syracuse. There a lot of people that graduated there. It just wasn’t for me.

Stahl: After your service what job did you…?

Sherman: Well right away I went to school as I mentioned, but I came home in November. It had to be somewhere probably around the Thanksgiving break as I remember, it’s a lot of years ago now. And that was in 1957 that I did that. So at the beginning of 1958, which was right after Christmas of ’57, I went in the field of consumer finance. And between consumer finance and in banking, I did that for a number of years and really loved it. I really enjoyed the business, learning it. But here again I’m not a college graduate and that was limiting, which was my problem, not the banks. And I had an opportunity to go into residential real estate. And I figured I better do it now or I’m never gonna do it. And now was to the point of 1972 is when I did this. Cause I did corporate collection work, consumer finance, banking and consumer finance. How we doing on time, good guys? You can cut this out if you have to?

Mrs. Sherman: Twenty minutes. You have twenty minutes done.

Sherman: So we have a few more minutes. So I had the discipline to sell residential real estate and take whatever it did to learn as much as I could about the business. And did that for eighteen years and retired when I was fifty-five. And if you look at the numbers, born 1935, then you know that I’m seventy-seven now. And been told that I was rather successful in it, selling houses, managing offices, and that I became the regional vice president. I did a lot of instructing. So all of the work early on in the Marine Corps that I had done instructor, really helped a lot in instructing, trying to help people how to do a better job, sell and list better, and make a good living and hold on to their money. And that’s what I did a lot of them.

Stahl: So you mentioned you worked at a bank, what bank?

Sherman: I worked in a couple of them, I’m not even sure if they’re in existence anymore cause banks get bought by other banks. The first one was Union County Trust Company in Linden, New Jersey. And then from there I went to, and I know Fidelity is a very large bank in New Jersey called Fidelity Union Trust. And I did the same jobs there and then I went into sales there, selling our products to businesses so that we could continue to help finance businesses and whatever it took for swimming pools, things like that. So I did that for a few years also, then I went into real estate business.

Lawrence: Did you play baseball at all after your service?

Sherman: I played softball. And I told my wife; in 1972 then I went back into real estate, I went into the real estate business and I was playing ball. We had a championship team, 4-0 Construction Company, we played as hard as we could to be the best we could be, we weren’t goofing off. One night I’m playing the outfield and I began to remember and think about my job of selling houses, and I knew it was time to quit. I couldn’t give it everything I had, so I told the fellows ‘thanks I’m out of here.’ Just stuck with selling, that’s it.

Stahl: Now have you kept in contact with any fellow veterans?

Sherman: No, only Fred Smith that I mentioned to you, that we saw each other in Virginia where we were living in Virginia at the time. A quick story that, Fred asked me, Lynn my wife, Fred and I are having a bite to eat at a nice Italian restaurant. And he says to me,’ What have you been doing the last fifty years?’ It took me about fifteen minutes and I told him. I said ‘How about you Fred?’ Somewhere around three o’clock in the morning we were still going. Good guy.

Lawrence: How did your military experiences affect your life?

Sherman: I would probably say the discipline of following rules, regulations. And yet when you knew you had to get something done, you got it done. And I think I could say I’ve approached that most of my life.

Stahl: Now the lessons you’ve learned in the military, did you use that in your house with your kids, or your children?

Sherman: Well Lynn and I have four children, and nine grandkids, five grand boys and four grand girls. And perhaps the way your parents do, they give you a lot of leeway, see if you can pull through, and then they bring you back if you’re off target a little bit, that sound about right? That’s about the way we approached it. And we were hoping that the grandkids, the adult children are overall doing fine, the grandkids we hope to see them in the right direction, they’re doing good.

Lawrence: Did you miss being in the service once it was over?

Sherman: No. I was glad I was in, I was glad I was out. I knew I wouldn’t be a career 20-year guy, I just knew I didn’t want to do that, for my business career.

Stahl: So what real estate company did you work for?

Sherman: Well I worked for two. One was Bariton Crane, and I worked with them out of an office in Liberty Corner, New Jersey. And then after four years, I went with Wikerd Realtors, and was in sales there, I managed some offices, was a regional vice president, running offices. I retired; my wife and I retired September, 1990. We’re just starting our twenty-third year of retirement now.

Stahl: Your bosses, were any of them veterans?

Sherman: Well, the one fellow that hired me at Wikerd Realtors had been in the Marine Corps, Bob Moray, he’s passed on a few years ago. He was in the Marine Corps, and he was a Drill Instructor at Parris Island. And Howe Moore, a fellow that I started with at Bariton Crane, had been in the Marine Corps. And I think he, being a little older than me, I think he went in just before the Korean War and happened to get out. It just worked out on the other side for him, as it did for ’54 for me. So those two fellows, and they were both terrific guys to work with, I was very fortunate.

Stahl: One more question. You said you played softball after the war right?

Sherman: Yes, in New Jersey.

Stahl: Was it like a team of veterans that you played with?

Sherman: No it was a bunch of different guys at all different fields, some of them might even been a little bit on the lazy side. But when it came to playing ball, we all worked as a good team, had a very outstanding team. We probably played between sixty-five to eighty-five games a year. So we were playing hard. And it was a lot of fun, but the business of selling houses overtook that, and I knew it, and it was time for me just to work.

Sherman: Platoon 410.

Stahl: So that’s a picture of you at bootcamp?

Sherman: Well, if you hold on for a sec, I have to look to see which I am. And I can’t, I thought I circled something, but I’m in here, believe me. But I just can’t quite pick that out for a minute, but any event, here one of our games. Naha is the capital of Okinawa, and this is the mayor of Naha. And this was a nation all star team that we played. And then we had our picture taken with them, and there’s a picture of me right there. And then some in uniform. This was in Japan, in Tokyo. That was our driver, who drove us around. And I happened to be in the newspaper one time so I sent it home to my mother so she knew I was still around, and she had kept it, so I put it in the book.

Stahl: So what was your driver’s name?

Sherman: I don’t remember, but I can tell you this. He worked for a bank, and it was the banker who couldn’t take us to lunch so he arranged to have the driver of the car take us out and show us the city. And we took him to eat which we didn’t pay for, the bank payed for so I thought it was wonderful. Let’s see here... I was there during a major Typhoon Emma in 1956. So I kept that, just to keep it in the book as a reminder. I never saw winds that strong in my life.

Stahl: Well was it scary?

Sherman: It was very scary, yeah, it truly was. The winds were blowing so hard, that the metal closets that you used to put your clothes in, we put those against the window so that the glass wouldn’t come in, it cut people. That’s the way that was handled. This picture here, that was taken in Japan also. Some different friends, pictures when I had hair. And here’s a picture in a bar. And the little fellow, I don’t know, it had to be somebody’s child, I have no idea who. So, no I don’t see these fellows anymore. This one was a good friend at the time. Herb Humphreysville from upstate New York. Here’s some of the motor scooters we used to ride in. And I just made a copy of my honorable discharge and put it in the book. Some different pictures of growing up.Pictures of my mom and dad. So I’m just trying to keep them all in a place.

Stahl: Now Mr. Sherman, how old were you in the picture?

Sherman: Looking at that picture, at that time I was stationed at Quantico, Virginia. That picture was taken in Washington D.C, and I was probably about, I would say nineteen and a half.

Lawrence: Before we conclude, in your lifetime, is there anything that you would like to share with us?

Sherman: Well I can share with you fellows the same thing that I share with my grandkids and other folks who I talk to is that there’s probably no one more important, there is no one more important than God. If you believe in God for the rest of your life, whether it’d be business, personal, whatever, If you believe in God, stay very close to Him. Now, aside from God, there’s nothing more important than your good health, nothing. If you don’t have good health, you got nothing. If you wanna get married, the second most important thing is a good spouse. The third is, watch what you do financially, always have good credit. Don’t misuse your money or your credit. It’ll come back to haunt you. And the fourth is, always have some money in the bank. So you’re not running from day to day wondering how you’re gonna get through the next day, till the next paycheck. Take care of yourself and your family properly. Those are my suggestions.

Lawrence: Alright.

Stahl: Thank you for letting us interview you and thank you for your service.

Sherman: Thank you very much guys, Colton, thank you.

__Walter Sherman Interview Questions__ Christian Stahl and Colton Lawrence Introduction: Hello this is Colton Larwence and Christian Stahl interviewing Mr. Walter John Sherman who was born on February 26, 1935. Mr. Sherman served in the Marines during the Korean War. The highest rank he earned was a Corporal. This interview is taking place in Cornwall, Pennsylvania for the Veteran’s History Project at the Library of Congress on Sunday, October 7, 2012. Thank you for letting us interview you and thank you for you service. (shake his hand)
 * 1) Where and when were you born?
 * 2) Did you have any brothers or sisters?
 * 3) Please tell us about your childhood.
 * 4) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Did you have any family members or friends that had joined the military?
 * 5) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Did you have a job before you joined the military?
 * 6) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">How did you enter the service, enlistment?
 * 7) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Why did you decide to join the military?
 * 8) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Were you nervous about joining the military? If so, Why?
 * 9) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What war did you serve in?
 * 10) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What branch of service were you in?
 * 11) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Why did you join that specific branch?
 * 12) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Where did you go for basic training?
 * 13) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What were your experiences at your basic training like?
 * 14) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Did you have trouble adapting to the conditions in camp?
 * 15) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What division were you in?
 * 16) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">How did you get along with the men in your division?
 * 17) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Where did you go for specialized training?
 * 18) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Where did you go after completing basic training?
 * 19) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What jobs did you have while on active duty?
 * 20) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Which was your favorite job?
 * 21) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Which was your least favorite job?
 * 22) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What did you do as a tank instructor?
 * 23) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What type of tanks did you work with?
 * 24) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> What was the most challenging part of being a tank instructor?
 * 25) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Which was your favorite base?
 * 26) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What places did you serve?
 * 27) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Did you witness any casualties? If so, How did you handle it?
 * 28) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What can you tell us about some of your experiences in the military?
 * 29) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Did you keep in contact with anyone back home? How?
 * 30) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What did you do during your free time or while you were off duty?
 * 31) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Where were you when the war ended?
 * 32) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">How did you feel when the war ended?
 * 33) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">How did you return home?
 * 34) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Were you excited to get back home?
 * 35) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">How were you treated by your family and the community?
 * 36) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Was it hard re-adjusting to the civilian life?
 * 37) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Have you contacted any fellow veterans since the war ended?
 * 38) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">How did your military experiences affect your life?
 * 39) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Did you learn any lessons in the military?

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Christian Stahl and Colton Lawrence

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 32px; vertical-align: baseline;">__Walter Sherman__

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 19px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Walter J Sherman was born on February 26, 1935 in the town of Nyack, New York State. He served in the Marine Corps for almost exactly three years active duty, in the Korean War. Sherman went to boot camp at Parris Island. He was a tank instructor and also a sharpshooter at bases he was at. He was stationed for 14 months at Okinawa, Japan. Also the highest rank he achieved while on active duty was a Corporal. Sherman is a proud veteran of the Korean Conflict.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 19px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> He started his duties in Parris Island, South Carolina, a Marine Boot Camp that began in 1891. Sherman was one of the 138,000 recruits at Parris Island during the Korean War. Parris Island is the “longest continually operating recruit training base.” There have been over 1 million men/women who have trained at Parris Island (Parris Island). After that he went to many bases.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 19px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> At some of those bases, he was a tank instructor and a sharpshooter. In the Korean War there were six main types of tanks that the Americans used. These tanks were created over the ten-year span from 1941 to 1951 (Korean War Tanks). He was also a sharpshooter on the firing range at a camp he was stationed at. That is a really good achievement at an army base because there are a lot of men and women there and you are the best shooter at the whole base. He was lucky and never saw any battles but he spent 14 months at Okinawa Japan.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 19px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Okinawa is a Japanese island that has been around since the 4th to 5th century. Okinawa was not in World War 2 until 1944. Then on August 21 America attacked the small island. American submarines sunk a Japanese ship killing 1700 people. 800 of those 1700 were school kids from Okinawa. Then there was the Battle of Okinawa. In the battle 90,000 Japanese soldiers died and 150,000 civilians died too (Okinawa History). Mr. Sherman went to the island after that and saw the devastation.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 19px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> The Korean War started on June 25, 1950 (History.com). Korea was originally the Chinese’s property. Then Japan took Korea over (Authentic History). America favored the government run by Southern Korea and the Soviet Union wanted to take over Northern Korea. America thought that the Soviet Union wanted to take over the whole peninsula of Korea so America put troops in the southern part of Korea (National Archives). Then the Korean War officially started.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 19px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Walter J Sherman was a very brave man to enlist in the United States Army. He went to Parris Island boot camp. He was a tank instructor and a sharpshooter. He was at Okinawa Japan for 14 months and at anytime he could have been sent to battle. That is the story of one brave American Man known as Walter J Sherman.