First Featured Legionnaire
by Marty Luebke, Post #23
Monday, April 23rd.
Today I had the privilege of being part of Post 23 Honor Color Guard as we laid our fellow Comrade Merle to rest.
It is perhaps fitting and timely that I share a brief story about my friend Merle. Several years ago (although it seems like yesterday) I recall seeing Merle going into the dugout. He often arrived at Legion Meetings early and on this particular Thursday I was also in town early so I joined him before others arrived. We finished a short discussion about hunting and got on the topic of WW II. As some may recall, Merle was not bashful about sharing stories of his WW II experiences. They were interesting, colorful and not always politically cor- rect in today’s world. When our discussion was over, I said to myself— Wow, someone should write this stuff down and share it before it is lost for all time. So Merle became the 1st person from our post that I had the privilege of featuring. Some of what I recorded is included in his obituary so I will not repeat it here. However, some of it is not, so I’d like to share some of that. Thanks again Merle for your friendship and for helping us better understand the lessons and pain of war. I pray that we learn from those hard lessons and become better citizens for them.
-Respectfully, Marty Luebke
Featured Legionaire: Merle Lamp
Every individual’s life is different and every person’s military experience is unique. Merle Lamp’s is no exception. As the oldest son in a family of 9, he helped out on the farm. “When my dad stepped on a rusty nail and developed blood poisoning, I dropped out of high school to help out”.
As Merle came closer to the draft age he had the idea that by voluntarily enlisting in the service his next three younger brothers might be spared the draft. I learned today that none of the three were, however, his next oldest brother Bob, had the same idea and enlisted also.
So after Merle’s 18th birthday in 1942, he attempted to enlist in the Air Force. However, because of his limited education he was not accepted. This did not stop Merle, instead, he joined the Army.
“I was sent to Basic Training at Ft. Snelling in Minneapolis and then to Camp White in Medford, OR. This was a new camp and part of my Infantry training included helping build the camp. After AIT I was sent to San Diego for additional Amphibious Training:” (Merle described training that sounded similar to a Navy Seal - as a frogman in scuba gear diving in underwater tactical capacity for military missions). “I was first sent to Hawaii and also received Jungle Training before going to Saipan. We spent time at a number of small islands in the Philippines where we took 3 beaches. The outfit I was with was also responsible for taking two beaches in Okinawa. I also went through some tough battles in Iwo Jima. I remember one scouting mission where we came under fire. My dive for cover was too late. I was shot in the knee and after 30 days recovery was back in action. Later in Okinawa, I was shot a 2nd time—this time in the back." (Continued on Page 2)
