Remembering Citizen Soldiers

There is a famous Roman General, Cincinnatus, who was asked to serve by the Senate while he was plowing in his fields.  He agreed to take charge of the army and country for as long as he was needed and walked away leaving his plow standing in field.  He was very successful in war and was honored and acclaimed by all the people.  They wanted him to remain as dictator.  But, he was a man of his word, and left the adulation and walked back to his plow where it stood and began right there his old way of life.

He was the ideal of the founding fathers of our country.  Many of the Revolutionary War soldiers were given frontier land for serving.  They named a new city in the  frontier after themselves:  Cincinnati.

Here are the Cincinnati from our family: 

Pre-World War I:

Edward Schuster :  Captain in the U.S. Calvary.   Just prior to WWI he was a riding instructor in Melrose Park.  Edward was my Grandfather Schuster's brother.

World War I - Army:

Edward Schuster:  He entered the war with the rank of Captain.  He was sent to France and was in trench warfare where he was a victim of mustard gas.  He returned home sick and "shell shock".  His father bought a farm in Wheatfield, Indiana, for him hoping quiet and clean air would help his recovery.  Must have done the job, because he ended up living  to 1970.

Sylvester Schuster: He was inducted into the army during the war and was waiting to be shipped from Norfolk, Virginia, when Armistice was declared. After the war he went back to work for Western Electric as an electrical engineer. Sylvester was Edward's younger brother and my grandfather.

Frank Rozanski: I found on his grave-marker that he was a machine-gunner in the famous 1st Illinois Division of the U.S. Army - the first to be sent to France.  He survived, but tragically died in an accident a few years after the war.  Frank was my Grandmother Schuster's brother.

World War II - Navy:

Donn, Bob, and Vernon Gros

Bob Gros:  Seaman First Class Signal Man, he did his basic training at Great Lakes Naval Station.  Then he went to Farragut, Idaho, for training in the Naval Armed Guard and to code school. From there he went to Treasure Island in San Francisco where he was shipped out.  The Naval Armed Guard was a group of about 20 men who were assigned to a Merchant Marine or Liberty Ship that carried cargo or troops.  His carried oil and airplane parts.  They had at least one 5 inch gun, but were really sitting ducks.

Bob was at the Battle for Leyte Gulf where he witnessed the Kamikazes and was part of the Invasion of the Philippines.  He was in New Guinea, but I don't think that there was action there then.  When the war ended, Bob was aboard ship out in the Pacific and had a choice to go to Japan to be part of the occupation or to go home.  He chose home.  Before the war he had a job as tool and die maker.  While on board ship, he learned carpentry to pass the time and it became his trade for the rest of his life. Bob was my Dad.

Vernon Gros:  Bob Gros' older brother.  He served stateside. Vern was the head of purchasing for the jewelry department at Montgomery Ward.

Donn (Adolph) Gros:  Bob Gros' younger brother.  He also served stateside. Donn had a varied career after the war - from resort owner to a concrete business.

Rudy Kaiser:  A mechanic, Rudy served both stateside and aboard ship.  After the war, Rudy worked as a machinist at Chicago Screw Company.  He was married to Bertha Nemcek, my mother-in-law's sister.

James Schuster:  Towards the end of the war when Jim graduated High School, he joined the Navy.  As far as I know he served Stateside. Afterwards he worked for the Elgin watch company and later as a financial officer for a corporation.  He met his wife Shirley at Elgin and they grew a large family - nine children!   Jim was my mother's brother.

World War II - Army:

Edward Nemcek:  "Jungle-Fighter" was the designation that was given to the men who fought in New Guinea.  Unfortunately, if these men survived, they were plagued for the rest of their lives with malaria.  This was the case for Ed.  He worked as a printer after the war, both for large printing houses and later for his own small firm.  Edward was the brother of my mother-in-law.

Donald Ricker:  Another man who fought in the jungles of New Guinea.  He too, had malaria that complicated surgery for a hip replacement.  It never healed and he passed away.  "Rick" worked as a finish carpenter and was married to my mother's sister Georgette.

Frank Sensendorf:  I believe that he was a weather man and was stationed first in the Aleutian Islands and later in Panama.  He too, contracted malaria in Panama.  We lived with him and my Aunt Ruth for a while after the war and I witnessed how sick he was.  Frank worked the rest of his life for Wyeth Laboratories.

Billy, Uncle Syl & Joanne

World War II - Air Force:

Syl Nemcek:  17 years old, he graduated from high school one day and reported for duty the next.  Syl became a tail-gunner for B-27 (24?)  Liberator bombers (259th Squadron) and participated in bombing raids over Tokyo. He miraculously lived to tell the tale - only 1 in 4 tail-gunners made it.  After the war he worked for Eastman Kodak until he retired.  He took part in many reunions with the 380th Bomb Group.  Syl was another of my mother-in-law's brothers.

A little WWII Patriot

Whenever Memorial Day comes around, I have remembrances that can't be easily talked about or be explained.  The flags, the ceremonies, the playing of Taps connects me to my childhood and to many people who are no longer alive.  Having been an infant and small child during World War II, I don't have many direct memories - just impressions.  But I have very vivid memories of the immediate aftermath and the struggle for normalcy in the years that followed.

Since WWII there have been others who have served and are serving today.  My cousin David Malmberg served in Vietnam;  my niece's husband, Dave Hoeks was in the Air Force and served with the Stragetic Air Command and in the First Gulf War.  Since they are still alive, I will let them tell their own stories!  As to those serving today as we celebrate Memorial Day, we ask God's protection and blessing.