Uncle Clyne's Interview

Rudy's Uncle Clyne (the same one who gave us this wonderful old wagon and shared his apples that I'm trying to grow into trees) is about to turn 90.  There will be a big celebration this weekend. 

Uncle Clyne is a WWII vet.  His story is amazing. He served on the USS Emmons.  The Emmons was attacked by five kamikaze planes and sunk in April of 1945.  Clyne was the second from the last to get off.  He saved the captains life.  The captain was in such bad shape that for years Clyne assumed he hadn't lived.  But he did.

Isn't he handsome!!!

In honor of his upcoming birthday, he was interviewed by several local newspapers.  There is an online post on him here.  The writer of this story did a great job.  I happen to think that he should be on the national news or included in a documentary on WWII.

This photo was taken as part of the interview.  Rudy gave him the USS Emmons hat as an early birthday gift a week or so ago.  Lorene says he hardly takes it off.  We've heard that a good many strangers seeing his hat have stopped to thank him for his service.

The Emmons resting place has been explored in dives.  A number of them are recorded on You Tube.  Rudy and I watched a few and of what we have seen so far, this one was our favorite.  It includes some facts about the ship and emphasizes respect of the site.

from YouTube video by TLCoki

On a fun note, the USS Emmons was one of the Navy ships used in an episode of Gilligan's Island.  You can see the show here.  It's episode 31 - Forget Me Not from April 24, 1965. Fast forward to 21:31.  The Emmons (457) is the ship in front.  The Grayson (435) is in back.  Stock footage was used for the show.

Screenshot from from Gilligan's Island

Clyne is a wonderful man - kind and gentle and quiet.  The war experience is just one aspect of his life and he hasn't spoken of it much all these years.  He and his wife Lorene have always lived simply even though they could afford to be extravagant.  They just never saw the need for getting too fancy. I love that about them. They are also known for working hard and steady and doing whatever needed to be done without complaint.  It's wonderful to see the two of them together.  They are still so in love. And they are both loved and revered by the whole (really big) family.

Happy Birthday Clyne!