Donald "Don" Graves - USMC 1942-1946, Iwo Jima

To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of WWII in 1945, USAWS is showcasing a WWII Veteran each month. Donald "Don" Graves quit high school to join the Marine Corps in 1942 when he was 17. On February 19th, 1945 at 8:00 in the morning Don Graves landed on Iwo Jima. Don was the only flame thrower in the Second Battalion that survived the battle. "We had 335 Marines going in, 18 came off, I think about my buddies all the time. How can anyone go through that thing—day one through the end and not get hit? Grace of God.”

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Albert J. Norton - U.S. Navy 1945-1948

To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of WWII in 1945, USAWS is showcasing a WWII Veteran each month. Albert Norton was born in 1927 in New Jersey where he lived until joining the Navy in 1945.  Albert originally joined the Seabees but when WWII ended the Navy no longer needed Seabees and Albert was transferred to the fleet.  Albert eventually served aboard the USS LEYTE (CV-32) an Essex-class aircraft carriers built during and shortly after World War II for the United States Navy.

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