November 12, 2012
Veterans Day program
Stock Market closed
61 degrees and sunny
18th Meeting of the Rotary Club of Eureka
Rotary Year 2012-2013
Flag Salute
Stock Market closed
61 degrees and sunny
18th Meeting of the Rotary Club of Eureka
Rotary Year 2012-2013
Flag Salute
Past President Don Leonard
Invocation
Past President Bruce Rupp
Veterans of the four branches of the military & the Coast Guard were honored. The Marines brought a cake in honor of the 237th anniversary of the Marines.
Invocation
Veterans of the four branches of the military & the Coast Guard were honored. The Marines brought a cake in honor of the 237th anniversary of the Marines.
Visiting Rotarians
No visiting Rotarians.
No visiting Rotarians.
Guests
Multiple veterans of various campaigns were in attendance and introduced
themselves to the club to extended applause.
Steve Jackson of Western Web was introduced by Past President Carlton Nielsen as a guest.
No student guests for Veterans Day
No exchange students due to Veterans Day
Remember that Larissa is having a fund raiser for her Rotary Trip to Hawaii. Homemade German food served at Lisa Slack’s home on Friday evening Nov. 30th.
Birthdays and Anniversaries are in the book, congratulations to all.
Announcements
• Christmas cards for veterans. If you forgot to bring one, you can still drop it off at any North Valley Bank location until Nov. 21st
• North Coast Honor Flight and the Eureka Symphony invite you to an evening of music and art honoring our Humboldt County WWII veterans at 5:30 PM today, November 12. Musical director Carol Jacobson has selected a program of moving American music, including Our Town, by American composer, Aaron Copland. Also featured will be portraits of the veterans by Trinidad artist, Kathrin Burleson, co-founder of North Coast Honor Flight.
• Rotary Club of Arcata Sunrise presents Taste of the Holidays this Thursday, November 15 th from 5:00-8:00PM at the Arcata Community Center
• If you are staying in Eureka on the 15th, participate in the Henderson Center Annual Holiday Open House where the Eureka High Interactor’s are having a fund raiser with money going to those impacted by Superstorm Sandy.
Recognitions
Jim Howard was served a birthday cake and instantly recognized. He likes to gamble? He won $1500 at a casino? He also "won" a rainmaker.
Raffle Winners
$10 to Bruce Smith & $10 to Sid Dominitz
Hank sent the point man on and tried to go around Outpost Queen, until he heard
Chinese voices and doubled back. He ran into his own machine gunner, who had
not gone on the mission and they made their way back to the aid station.
Program
Speaker's pre-introduction done by Steve Justus, mentioned our club's great success with Honor Flight, bringing WWII veterans back to the monument in Washington D.C. Steve announced our extension of Honor Flight to Korea veterans.
Mack Gardiner, Korean War veteran, former Boy Scout leader and member of Eureka Rotary for 22 years, introduced Hank Nicol. Hank was raised in California, enlisted in the Army, and won two Purple Hearts. Hank is well-traveled, having gone to New Zealand and Australia, then joining the Peace Corps where we worked primarily in Thailand. Hank is a member of the color guard and an excellent photographer.
Don "Hank" Nicol, a Korean War veteran and recipient of two Purple Hearts was our featured speaker.
Hank got a Purple Heart walking down the road towards the shower! Easyfinger. Christmas Hill and the main line of resistance had a hill between them. The raging battle on the middle hill, Outpost Queen, went on for over two years. Easy company took heavy casualties ahead of the outpost position. Hank's company, on the second to last day of the war (unbeknownst to them,) advanced to Easyfinger. They were to collect the bodies of their fallen. They saw piles of untouched sea rations, which the Chinese apparently disliked as much as the Americans did.
The day was incredibly foggy, and Hank's troop passed several small bunkers, and several dead bodies. About 50 feet away, they saw a ruined bunker through the fog. Hanks point man got too far in front, and Hank bearded a dog barking behind them. One of his troop shot it with an M1.
The point man got to the ruined bunker, about head high, and gunfire erupted and a grenade hit him in the side of the helmet. Suddenly, Hank's men had put their bayonets on their carbines, and the point man popped up and came running back! The grenade was a flash, intended to knock him out and capture him. He was knocked out, but only for a moment.
Hank's team started shooting. The KATUSA embedded jammed his M1, so he handed it to Hank to unjam it. While the other team was picking up bodies, Hank's team engaged in a 30-minute firefight, which seemed like 3 1/2 hours.
Between the bunker and Hank's team were two dead GI's.
The platoon behind had finished collecting bodies and was pulling out, so Hank's team began to back out in reverse order (he had three squads with about 20 men total).
Hank mixed up his own orders and started backing away in confusion, when mortar fire erupted around them. He kept his squads moving and an injured man fell at his feet. He was the only WWII vet and didn't have his own medic bag, so Hank used his own. The man miraculously got up and made it back on his own.
Suddenly, Hank was hit in the leg, lightly, and got a nasty Charlie horse, making walking difficult. Everyone made it back ahead except Hank and the point man, who stayed with him.
Hank and his team had a profanity laced discussion of the scouting mission, and when the chaplain objected, the two of them had a fight.
The captain gathered all the men, and with a straight face, announced that the truce was to be signed the next morning at 10 am, to be effective that night at 10 pm. Nobody cheered, mostly from exhaustion.
The next morning, the captain called for Hank and the fog lifted early. At about 10 am, there was all quiet. But by 11:30, there was a steady roar of fire and shells going back and forth.
There were quite a few casualties that last day of the war from the shelling. Both sides kept firing until just before 10 pm.
The next day, the men were ordered to clean up the hill, and Hank personally threw away three flamethrowers.
Just before they left, a colonel decided the hill wasn't clean enough, and they were sent back to do it over.
Hank and some of his fellows have a book, out of print, called "Christmas in July."
Applause.
Our guest signed the library book, was thanked, and the meeting ended on time.
Respectfully Submitted,
John Harper
Steve Jackson of Western Web was introduced by Past President Carlton Nielsen as a guest.
No student guests for Veterans Day
No exchange students due to Veterans Day
Remember that Larissa is having a fund raiser for her Rotary Trip to Hawaii. Homemade German food served at Lisa Slack’s home on Friday evening Nov. 30th.
Birthdays and Anniversaries are in the book, congratulations to all.
Announcements
• Christmas cards for veterans. If you forgot to bring one, you can still drop it off at any North Valley Bank location until Nov. 21st
• North Coast Honor Flight and the Eureka Symphony invite you to an evening of music and art honoring our Humboldt County WWII veterans at 5:30 PM today, November 12. Musical director Carol Jacobson has selected a program of moving American music, including Our Town, by American composer, Aaron Copland. Also featured will be portraits of the veterans by Trinidad artist, Kathrin Burleson, co-founder of North Coast Honor Flight.
• Rotary Club of Arcata Sunrise presents Taste of the Holidays this Thursday, November 15 th from 5:00-8:00PM at the Arcata Community Center
• If you are staying in Eureka on the 15th, participate in the Henderson Center Annual Holiday Open House where the Eureka High Interactor’s are having a fund raiser with money going to those impacted by Superstorm Sandy.
Recognitions
Jim Howard was served a birthday cake and instantly recognized. He likes to gamble? He won $1500 at a casino? He also "won" a rainmaker.
 | |
Raffle Winners
$10 to Bruce Smith & $10 to Sid Dominitz
Program
Speaker's pre-introduction done by Steve Justus, mentioned our club's great success with Honor Flight, bringing WWII veterans back to the monument in Washington D.C. Steve announced our extension of Honor Flight to Korea veterans.
Mack Gardiner, Korean War veteran, former Boy Scout leader and member of Eureka Rotary for 22 years, introduced Hank Nicol. Hank was raised in California, enlisted in the Army, and won two Purple Hearts. Hank is well-traveled, having gone to New Zealand and Australia, then joining the Peace Corps where we worked primarily in Thailand. Hank is a member of the color guard and an excellent photographer.
Don "Hank" Nicol, a Korean War veteran and recipient of two Purple Hearts was our featured speaker.
Hank got a Purple Heart walking down the road towards the shower! Easyfinger. Christmas Hill and the main line of resistance had a hill between them. The raging battle on the middle hill, Outpost Queen, went on for over two years. Easy company took heavy casualties ahead of the outpost position. Hank's company, on the second to last day of the war (unbeknownst to them,) advanced to Easyfinger. They were to collect the bodies of their fallen. They saw piles of untouched sea rations, which the Chinese apparently disliked as much as the Americans did.
The day was incredibly foggy, and Hank's troop passed several small bunkers, and several dead bodies. About 50 feet away, they saw a ruined bunker through the fog. Hanks point man got too far in front, and Hank bearded a dog barking behind them. One of his troop shot it with an M1.
The point man got to the ruined bunker, about head high, and gunfire erupted and a grenade hit him in the side of the helmet. Suddenly, Hank's men had put their bayonets on their carbines, and the point man popped up and came running back! The grenade was a flash, intended to knock him out and capture him. He was knocked out, but only for a moment.
Hank's team started shooting. The KATUSA embedded jammed his M1, so he handed it to Hank to unjam it. While the other team was picking up bodies, Hank's team engaged in a 30-minute firefight, which seemed like 3 1/2 hours.
Between the bunker and Hank's team were two dead GI's.
The platoon behind had finished collecting bodies and was pulling out, so Hank's team began to back out in reverse order (he had three squads with about 20 men total).
Hank mixed up his own orders and started backing away in confusion, when mortar fire erupted around them. He kept his squads moving and an injured man fell at his feet. He was the only WWII vet and didn't have his own medic bag, so Hank used his own. The man miraculously got up and made it back on his own.
Suddenly, Hank was hit in the leg, lightly, and got a nasty Charlie horse, making walking difficult. Everyone made it back ahead except Hank and the point man, who stayed with him.
Hank and his team had a profanity laced discussion of the scouting mission, and when the chaplain objected, the two of them had a fight.
The captain gathered all the men, and with a straight face, announced that the truce was to be signed the next morning at 10 am, to be effective that night at 10 pm. Nobody cheered, mostly from exhaustion.
The next morning, the captain called for Hank and the fog lifted early. At about 10 am, there was all quiet. But by 11:30, there was a steady roar of fire and shells going back and forth.
There were quite a few casualties that last day of the war from the shelling. Both sides kept firing until just before 10 pm.
The next day, the men were ordered to clean up the hill, and Hank personally threw away three flamethrowers.
Just before they left, a colonel decided the hill wasn't clean enough, and they were sent back to do it over.
Hank and some of his fellows have a book, out of print, called "Christmas in July."
Applause.
Our guest signed the library book, was thanked, and the meeting ended on time.
Respectfully Submitted,
John Harper
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