Merchant Marine veteran thanks those who remember

To the Editor:

I am the Indiana State President of the American Merchant Marine Veterans of WWII and I want to thank your newspaper for publishing the article about who we are and why we deserve recognition from our fellow citizens and Congress (“Country has obligation to honor its Merchant Marine veterans.” letter to the editor Oct. 30 Times-News).

We played a major part in winning WWII and yet our efforts are largely overlooked and neglected in the history books for that period. There are about 8,500 left of us who volunteered in WWII to man the hundreds of ships being built then out of an estimated 250,000 who were recruited from high schools. So thank you very much.

Don Ellwood, a WWII 16-year-old volunteer Merchant Marine seaman

Pendleton, Ind.