December 7, 1941 (final)
December 4, 2008 – 6:00 amThree more memories –
Ralph vividly remembers where he was – at the Oxford Movie Theater on Rising Sun Avenue in the Burkhome section of Philadelphia watching a double feature. It wasn’t until he went out onto the street that he heard what had happened. Everyone was talking about the attack. However, it was at school the next day that the importance of the attack became very real. Northeast High was an all-male school. Every student knew that the events of the previous day would drastically effect his life far into the future.
Margarita was at her home in Wynnefield, near Philadelphia, when news of the attack came over the radio. She was with her mother and other family members. Her greatest memory is that of fear. The attack was a terrible shock accompanied with worry for her own safety. She recalls looking at the windows in her bedroom and thinking they could be blown out. Her comment is that she was “really afraid.”
Anne was at Penn State College, now Pennsylvania State University, in Centre County. She was eating dinner with fellow students in the dining room when word of the attack was announced. The news was met with great shock and unhappiness. Many of the girls were crying because their boyfriends were already in the service. And, of course, the male students knew that war would greatly change their plans. It was a time of much uncertainty about the future.
This ends my series of memories of Pearl Harbor Day. I am grateful to the people who shared their stories. Sunday is Pearl Harbor Day. On Monday, December 8, I will feature President Delano Roosevelt’s Day of Infamy speech.
For more World War II stories, go to www.peggeorge.com.
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