25th Infantry Tropic Lightning Monument/United by Sacrifice Memorial

The United By Sacrifice Memorial, located on base at Schofield Army Barracks, was designed by Lynn Liverton, an accomplished Hawaii-based sculptor who was contracted to create a memorial that would honor the sacrifices of our modern Soldiers and show the legacy of service and support for the current Soldier by those who served in earlier wars.

Behind the modern-day Soldier are Soldiers that represent those who fought in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. The veteran Soldiers are seen reaching out to support the modern-day Soldier, who was modeled after Sargent James R. Rivera of the 25th infantry Tropic Lightning Division. Rivera was used as the model for the sculpture during his stay at Schofield where he recovered from injuries sustained in the war in Iraq.  

The 25th Infantry Division Memorial will soon be duplicated and found in Washington D.C. at the National Museum of the United States Army as well. To have a brick placed with your name on it around the Memorial and make a donation to the 25th Infantry Memorial Fund, be sure to visit www.25thmemorialfund.org

Pearl Harbor Survivor Alfred Rodrigues

Click on the photo above to learn a little bit more about a close friend of Home of the Brave Tours, Alfred Rodrigues. Alfred was stationed at Bishop Point near the entrance to Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941 and witnessed the first minutes of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor!

The first in our Before & After Veterans Series!

 Aloha Folks!

We apologize for the lack of updates-things here at the museum and within the company have been very busy with a new newsletter being the main focus of the week. However, this weekend will bring lots of new posts and historical info-including a vast assortment sunday afternoon of new updates and entries with lots of vintage WWII photos! Be sure to click the photo to see the now-version of Steele, who joined on Home of the Brave tours not too long ago!

USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park

Pearl Harbor is also home to the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, located right next door to the USS Arizona Memorial Visitor Center. The USS Bowfin Submarine was Launched on December 7, 1942 and began her patrols in World War II nicknamed the "Pearl Harbor Avenger". During the course of her nine wartime patrols she sank an astonishing number of 44 enemy ships & accumulated over 98,758 nautical miles traveled during her time at sea.

Currently, the submarine is operated as a "living museum" to the public & provides in-depth audio tours that guide you through the sub as you explore its upper deck and inside as well. In addition to the Bowfin sub, the Pacific Submarine Museum can be visited where you can explore the fascinating history of submarines, with the first daring attempt in 1776 to use a submersible in warfare to the feats of todays nuclear submarines. The Museum Giftshop provides lots of nautical and naval items that include hats, t-shirts, books, movies and unique souvenir gifts for all ages to remember your visit to the USS Bowfin.

The park is also home to the World War II Submarine Waterfront Memorial, which stands in silent tribute to the 52 American submarines and more than 3,500 submariners lost in World War II. The Memorial provides a gorgeous overlook of Pearl Harbor & Ford Island as well.

The USS Arizona Memorial

The USS Arizona Memorial stands over the sunken remains of the Battleship Arizona. At approximately 8:06 a.m., 11 minutes after the attack on Pearl Harbor began by the Japanese, the USS Arizona exploded after being hit by a 1,760 armor-piercing bomb that dropped through its front deck and into its forward ammunition magazine. In less than nine minutes she had sank, coming to her final resting place on the bottom of Pearl Harbor and taking with her 1,177 sailors with her.

The 184-foot-long Memorial structure you see today was constructed in 1961 and dedicated in 1962. The architect of the Memorial, Alfred Preis, commented on the design, "wherein the structure sags in the center but stands strong and vigorous at the ends, expresses initial defeat over ultimate victory...The overall effect is one of serenity. Overtones of sadness have been omitted to permit the individual to contemplate his own personal responses...his innermost feelings." The flagpole aboard the memorial is attached to the severed mainmast of the sunken battleship as a special tribute to the ship and its lost crew.

On board the memorial you can visit the Shrine room-in here you can find the names of the 1,177 men who lost their lives on board the Arizona that morning. You can also see the names of the Arizona survivors who choose to have their ashes interred within the ship after they pass away, bringing them back to be with their fellow sailors who lost their lives Sunday morning, December 7, 1941.

 

Sterling Cale, Pearl Harbor Survivor

Here is a wonderful biography on a great friend of the Blog of the Brave and Home of the Brave Tours, Sterling Cale. Sterling has greeted our guests on the tour since we started in 1991 when he worked at the Schofield Barracks Officers Club and now meets with those on board our tour at the Arizona Memorial Visitors Center.

Sterling is one of our great American heroes that we are proud to showcase on our blog-in the next few days we will be showcasing other bold & brave men that were here on that Date of Infamy, December 7th 1941!

USS Missouri Drydock Update

The Mighty Mo was starting to fade, but an 18-million dollar facelift will soon have her feeling better then ever.

The battleship USS Missouri, commissioned on January 29, 1944 in the midst of the American push through the Pacific in World War II. It played an integral part in the invasion of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and is probably known most for being the ship that the Japanese Surrender was signed on, ending the war in the Pacific on September 2, 1945.

 The Missouri has called Pearl Harbor home since June 21, 1998 and has been one of the most popular tourist attractions ever since. The Missouri offers a multitude of tours aboard the ship that you can purchase online at our very own Pearl Harbor Headquarters when she is back in business early next year. 

The 65-year-old ship heads into the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard tomorrow morning for sandblasting, hull inspection, replacement of rusted steel, installment of a system to monitor corrosion inside the hold and last but not least a fresh coat of paint. If all goes well and on schedule, tours of the battleship will resume a few weeks after it comes out of the Drydock on January 6, 2010. In the meantime, we offer many other options for your Pearl Harbor experience that include the USS Arizona Memorial, USS Bowfin Submarine tours, Hawaii's Pacific Aviation Museum and our very own Home of the Brave Hawaii Victory Tour-all available HERE!

Italian Prisoner of War Fountain at Fort Shafter

This gorgeous fountain has a lot more history than you may think! Located at Fort Shafter, it was sculpted by four Italian prisoners of war during their two year internment on the island of Oahu.  The Italian POW's, which numbered at over 5,000, constructed it in 1944 while they participated in non-military labor projects under guidelines of the Geneva Convention.

One of the artists, Alfredo Giusti from Pietrasanta, Italy even inscribed his name and address on the northern most side of the fountain! Alfredo was an avid artist and also constructed two other sculptures out at the Coast Guard station on Sand Island.

One of our favorite stories that we tell is the honeymooning newlyweds who fell in together after handing over their camera to our tour guide to snap a pic-as a matter of fact, if your eye is keen enough in our Museum you can find the photo hiding amongst our collection of memorable moments on board the tour! If you have seen the recent Disney movie "Pearl Harbor" you may recognize the fountain as well as the surrounding area, utilized in a few scenes throughout the film!

1942 Harley-Davidson Military Motorcycle Operation & Maintenance Manual

In our Home of the Brave Museum, we have a 1942 Harley-Davidson Military Motorcycle on display. It is a model 42WLA-Solo edition and in pristine condition!

Harley-Davidson began producing the WLA's in small numbers in 1940, as part of a general military expansion. The later entry of the United States into World War II saw significantly increased production, with over 90,000 being produced during the war (along with spare parts the equivalent of many more). Unusually, all the WLAs produced after Pearl Harbor, regardless of the actual year, would be given serial numbers indicating 1942 production. Thus, war-time machines would come to be known as 42WLAs. 

In early September we had the privilege of having Mr. Steve Honchar and his wife Cindy from Mineral, VA on board our tour. In his younger years, Steve worked on the exact same model motorcycles in his grandfather's Harley-Davidson Shop & was kind enough to share some of his memories in the museum during the tour! They recently mailed us his father's Operations & Maintenance Manual that will soon be on display with the hope that (with Steve's help!) we might someday bring the Motorcycle back to life.

The USARPAC Patch

LTG. Robert Richardson authorized the United States Army Pacific (USARPAC) patch on August 1st, 1944. This is a wartime patch with great significance!

The blue color of the patch represents the Pacific Ocean, covering both Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Reflecting off the surface of the water in the Southern Hemispheres are the four stars of the Southern Cross (the fifth star is not visible from Hawaii-we see it in our southern skies for only part of the year). The seven stars of Ursa Major (Big Dipper) are located on the upper right hand side and on the left in the Northern Hemisphere is the North Star (Polaris). If you add up the number of stars on the patch the total comes to Twelve, representing the month of December. The seven stars in the Big Dipper represent the seventh day of December, and the four stars of the Southern Cross and the North Star represent the number 41, or the year 1941. We see the date of the attack on Pearl Harbor in the stars, December 7th, 1941. 12/07/41.

The arrow in the center of the patch is a military map symbol;the Army calls this an "Axis of Advance". It shows the movement of troops across a battlefield. During WWII the entire Pacific Ocean was a battlefield. In this case the arrow extends from the first land victory in the Pacific (Guadalcanal) and extends to the final victory at Tokyo Bay in Japan where the surrender was signed. The arrow is painted red, symbolizing the blood shed and sacrifices made by American soldiers as they fought their way across the Pacific. The white outline of the arrow symbolizes the purity of the purpose and mission American soldiers were fighting for!

The USARPAC patch is still proudly work by our soldiers in the Pacific today!

Aloha & Welcome to the Blog of the Brave!

Welcome to the Blog of the Brave, a World War II "Time Machine" Blog that looks to perpetuate the unforgettable memories and stories of America's "Greatest Generation". Here you will find a multitude of stories, photographs, memorabilia, links and other World War II-related posts provided by our exclusive museum, its exhibits and our very own Historian webmaster.