That was a big surprise because we walked to shore. The landing on Okinawa unopposed. Then we learned the battle plan that the generals had established to defend the island involved allowing us to come ashore and then stopping us on a line called the Shuriyana burrow line which was midway in the island of Okinawa. That's where the major part of that 82-day campaign was fought.

As far as my own experience, I was first assigned to Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 29th Marines, 6th Marine Division. That was a rifle company and I was in this ammunition carrier in a machine gun platoon. When we went north to relieve an army unit that had become bogged down, that was still my job. On May 17th, my unit, which consisted of this 2nd platoon of Fox Company and my machine gun section, assaulted a place called Sugar Loaf Hill. We took heavy casualties. We were the 11th assault.

When that little engagement was over, my rifle company had gone from 251 men to 61 men. I was hit in the hand by a sniper. I spent two days in a battalion aid station. When I came back [to work] my job changed. I was now reporting into a company commander. His runner was hit by a sniper and killed, and I became the company runner. We were there a total of 101 days and were in combat 82 [of those] days. My regiment in the end registered an 82% killed or wounded ratio. You know there's an old saying that the dead ones are still there. The real heroes are still there. I believe that. I'm only here because I'm lucky.

I arrived home at 3:00 in the morning on Memorial Day, 1946. Great day to come home from a war.