NJ WWII veteran celebrated 100th Birthday & 75 year anniversary

[Jersey mike]

A nice little story, I thought I'd share it.

Portion of the article is below;


" 'I got a wonderful girl': Marlboro WWII vet saluted for 100th birthday, 75th anniversary"


MARLBORO - Ben Indelicato had just graduated from high school in Brooklyn when the Army draft notice arrived. It was 1943, and World War II was raging.

"Uncle Sam said, 'I need you,'" the Marlboro resident recalled. "It was my duty. Nobody wants to go. But you go."

So off he went to the Pacific theater, where he helped liberate the Philippines in 1945. His primary task: laying telephone line to improve communication.

"Somebody had to put the wires up through the trees," he said. "They used to call us 'the monkeys' because we used to climb the trees. They picked me because I was small."

https://www.app.com/story/news/local/how-we-live/2024/08/23/marlboro-world-war-ii-veteran-hits-100th-birthday-75th-anniversary/74867425007/

[carolinarider09]

A nice little story, I thought I'd share it.

Portion of the article is below;


" 'I got a wonderful girl': Marlboro WWII vet saluted for 100th birthday, 75th anniversary"


MARLBORO - Ben Indelicato had just graduated from high school in Brooklyn when the Army draft notice arrived. It was 1943, and World War II was raging.

"Uncle Sam said, 'I need you,'" the Marlboro resident recalled. "It was my duty. Nobody wants to go. But you go."

So off he went to the Pacific theater, where he helped liberate the Philippines in 1945. His primary task: laying telephone line to improve communication.

"Somebody had to put the wires up through the trees," he said. "They used to call us 'the monkeys' because we used to climb the trees. They picked me because I was small."

https://www.app.com/story/news/local/how-we-live/2024/08/23/marlboro-world-war-ii-veteran-hits-100th-birthday-75th-anniversary/74867425007/

There is a reason that "his" generation is called the "Greatest Generation".   And his story echos others I have heard.  My dad flew fighters (USMC) in WWII.   I never ever heard a word about what he did.  I have some movies he took after the war ended in Hawaii. He did not fly privately after he got home.  Just went back the being a Forester. 

Also, just as an aside, I have always thought of Lineman as "special".  We rarely consider what their jobs entail.  We see them during the day, working on the power lines but seldom think about what they have to do after a wind storm and power needs to be restored.   Critical and special jobs. 

Just one tribute to Lineman I use to play before some of the classes I taught to emphasize safety. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBJyyEAw-6g

[scooperhsd]

After our first hurricane in NC (Fran), the whole area was having power issues. Lots of folks lined up at a Golden Corral for Sunday brunch - a Line crew came and EVERYBODY put them to the head of the line, so they could eat and get back work restoring everybody's power...