GUARDIANS OF FREEDOM
Saluting Those Who Served in the U.S. Army
LaVerne Hanselman in World War II, Part 1
by Janis Stein

Before the end of World War II, LaVerne Hanselman joined the United States Army. At the age of 18, this Sanilac County young man made his way through Basic Training and prepared for his time overseas.

After receiving his draft notice, on March 10, 1945, LaVerne Hanselman, along with an entire group of young men from Sanilac County, boarded a Greyhound bus in Forestville. Traveling first to Detroit and then onward to the Induction Center at Fort Sheridan, Illinois, LaVerne contemplated the days ahead. Because he had previously sailed on the Great Lakes, LaVerne wanted to join the Navy, however, World War II was in full swing and the Army was in such great need of young men to fortify the lines, the Army had first choice.

After a long week at the Induction Center, LaVerne and several other new recruits moved on to Georgia for 16 weeks of Basic Training. During training at Camp Gordon, LaVerne became part of Company C, 29th Batallion, 9th Regiment. LaVerne learned how to take orders; how to march; how to take care of his firearm; how to use a bayonet; and a host of other skills including how to dig fox holes.

During night training, privates had to successfully make their way through a building riddled with small explosives. The goal was to make it through without detonating these explosives, and while LaVerne was successful, there were plenty of privates who weren’t. At the young age of 18, some of these experiences scared LaVerne more than he would have cared to admit, but he learned as he went.

While LaVerne and many of the new recruits were barely 18, some of the soldiers in Basic Training were 30 years of age with young families waiting for them at home. When the days of training proved challenging, these older soldiers often served as father figures to their younger counterparts.

After 12 weeks of Basic Training, soldiers were granted a pass to go up town. Those soldiers who enjoyed their newfound freedom a bit too much and failed to return to base at the specified time endured the consequences. Soldiers in violation spent their time digging a six by six hole, six feet deep. When LaVerne found his buddy with shovel in hand, LaVerne snuck out to help him dig the hole. Had LaVerne been caught lending a hand, he would have had his own hole to dig!

LaVerne successfully completed Basic Training and returned home for a 10-day furlough before promptly returning to Camp Gordon to begin an eight-week course in Infantry Advanced Training. During this Advanced Training, LaVerne learned to fire an arsenal of different weaponry, including bazookas.

By this time, the war in Germany had ended and atomic bombs had been dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. LaVerne and his fellow soldiers were preparing to replace troops in Japan who had earned enough points to rotate home. After completing the Infantry Advanced Training, LaVerne and the other replacement soldiers boarded a train that would take them across the country to the west coast. LaVerne spent his time at Fort Lewis in the state of Washington where his training continued.

Within a few weeks, LaVerne boarded the USSR Victory, the troop ship that would sail the northern route to Japan. Up to 800 soldiers traveled aboard the troop ship and, with favorable weather, the USSR Victory made the trip in about eight days. The Victory stopped at a port in Nagoya, halfway down Japan to the southwest.

As LaVerne set foot on Japanese soil, he wondered about the road ahead. LaVerne and some of the other soldiers, about 30 in all, loaded onto a 6 by 6. Sitting in the back of the open truck with a canvas covering the top, these men took in the scenery as they traveled to their next stop, which was a Military Police outfit. The MP outfit, though, was breaking up; the replacement soldiers bounced from one location to the next until they landed in an outfit that needed them. By October 1, 1945, LaVerne had been sent up to four different maintenance outfits before he ended up with the 3607, a Heavy Automotive Maintenance (HAM) Company.

Be sure to look for the continuation next month as LaVerne recalls his days in Japan.

© 2010 Stein Expressions, LLC