Remembering the Attack on Pearl Harbor in Putnam
On Friday, Dec. 7, local veterans, scouts, civil air patrol members and county officials remembered the attack on Pearl Harbor, which lead to the United States entering into WWII that occurred 71 years to the day earlier.
The ceremony which was hosted by Carmel V.F.W. Post gave attendees a glimpse into what the American lifestyle was prior to Pearl Harbor as well as a recount as to what happened on Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked the unsuspecting military base.
PutnamCountyhas three known surviving WWII veterans; only one was able to make the ceremony.
Charles Johansen of Kent, who served in the Army from 1943-1945 in the European campaign, spoke about the impact the events of Pearl Harbor had on his life.
“A few friends and I decided we were going to go see a movie,” said Johansen. “One of the fellas came and said that his father heard on a radio that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor. None of us knew where Pearl Harbor was; we did not know what it was.”
The next day President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared war on Japan. The following day many of the men Johansen knew joined the Armed Forces.
“My older brother joined up,” said Johansen. “He joined the Air Force but he had to wait for his class to start before he could go. I was old enough to go into the military, but my parents said that they would not let two of us go in at the same time.”
Johansen was drafted into the Army in March of 1943.
After he told his story, Karl Rohde, the county’s veterans service agency director, spoke about the importance of hearing the stories the veterans have.
“We have to get the history from them,” said Rohde. “We have to go around and talk to them and get their stories. It is not like reading the history book; it is the real thing.”
County Executive MaryEllen Odell was in attendance and when offered the opportunity to speak she kept it very simple. From her seat she said to Johansen and the other veterans, “Thank you for your service.”
Earlier in the day a special Pearl Harbor & 911 Memorial Exhibit was on display in the Putnam County Clerk’s Office at 34 Gleneida Avenue in Carmel. WWII memorabilia was on display courtesy of Patterson’s Brian Benedict.
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.
