Rol and Virginia’s WWII Story

Did you have relatives or friends who served during WWII?  Perhaps they were among the more than 39 million Americans who served in a war that spanned seven years and killed over 52 million people from 25 countries. As a baby boomer who was born in 1946, nine months after my father returned from the Pacific, I grew up aware that my Dad had served in the Army.   But most of the details were sketchy as my parents were not focused on the past.  Instead they were busy finally enjoying their married life together, creating their family and building a future for all of us.  Over the years, few details about that time surfaced, but as an adult I knew very little about my father’s service and what life was like for then during the war years.   No one really talked about those times and I didn’t know enough to ask.  Basically what I knew about my parent’s life during the war was limited to these facts:

• They had planned a large wedding for March 1942 but had to cancel it after my father was drafted.
• Over Thanksgiving weekend in 1942 while my father was on leave, they eloped…getting married at Mom’s brother’s home in Chattanooga.
• My father spent most of his service stationed in New Guinea.
• During the war mom taught 2nd grade and lived in a boarding house with other teachers in Alcoa, TN.  She resigned as soon as Dad got home.
• Resources were scarce during the war and ration stamps were used for items like sugar and gasoline.
• My father was proud to have served and throughout his life he was very active in the VFW and American Legion in our home town, Maryville, TN.

Then in June 2014, this limited knowledge expanded when I made an amazing discovery.  While going through my mother’s personal papers which had been in my closet for 8 years, I found letters Dad had written her.  Some were early correspondence when they first started dating, but the bulk of the letters…more than 400 chronicled my father’s service over a four year time span.   Starting February 27, 1942, when he took his oath at Ft. Oglethorpe, Georgia, to his coming home cable sent November 1945 from Long Beach, California, these letters, cards, v mails and cables captured the reality of fathers like mine who were far from home and their loved ones and were fighting to ensure our freedom.

I learned so much about my parents in reading the letters.  I cried and I laughed as their story unfolded, but most importantly I developed a deep sense of pride for the people I called Mom and Dad.  After I read every letter and arranged them chronologically, I knew I had to tell their story.   So I decided to write a book (Dear Jenny; Letters, Love & Longing, My Parents WWII Story) based on the letters and Mom’s diary entries and expect to have it completed early 2016.

As I began my research, I found many books about WWII—the battles, campaigns and leaders, but few focused on the common soldier like my father, Roland E Jett.  He entered service as a Private when he was 34 and within 10 months became a Technical Sergeant.  In May 1943, he left Camp Shelby for San Francisco and shipped out to support the Pacific Theater.  For the next 30 months he worked in the jungles primarily in New Guinea with the 3143rd Ordnance Medium Automotive Maintenance Company.  Finally at age 37, he headed back home to build the life he and my mother had put on hold four years earlier.

My parent’s letters were the key to their courage, bravery and hope during their years apart.  It was their life line, and I am so grateful that my mother never threw those letters away.  Now, I can share their story with others who many not know about the sacrifice and challenges of that generation. So if you still have family members or friends who served in the war, I encourage you to talk with them, hear their stories, and learn about their experiences.  But most importantly, remember to thank them for their service and the freedoms we enjoy today.