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Braswell Deen

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There were only a couple of dozen Marines holding the position. With the help of a nearby mortar platoon, they held off Banzai charges and approaches from the water side. The next morning, there were hundreds of dead Japanese all around, recalls Braswell Dean, who was soon on the advance again. (5:17)

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They were successful on Peleliu, says Marine Braswell Deen, if you can be successful with an 80% casualty rate. He was disturbed to later learn that the airfield that was the objective of the assault turned out to not be needed. At least his exhausted platoon got a much needed break. (3:26)

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Back then they called it psychoneurosis. Men spent from battle would sit and stare off into space according to Braswell Deen, who was lucky to survive Peleliu and preparing for Okinawa. Only one man from his unit, Odell Evans, emerged from those two battles unscathed. (3:41)

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Braswell Deen was relieved when he landed on Okinawa, but that feeling was short lived. The enemy was mostly on the South end of the island and his unit spent the first few weeks cleaning out the North. He was the talker when they were clearing caves, yelling in Japanese for them to come out before the grenades came in. (6:45)

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They took and lost the Okinawan village three times, says Braswell Deen. It was flame thrower tanks that eventually led to the Marines' victory there. As they moved on, he had to leave the man next to him who was shot through the head. It was about this time that an enemy grenade landed in a foxhole and Bill Foster threw himself on it, earning a posthumous Medal of Honor. (4:12)

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The Japanese were dug in on Okinawa, like on so many islands, and the Marines were mounting a furious assault. Charging Wana Ridge with a Thompson submachine gun in his hand, Braswell Deen felt like he was hit with a ton of rocks. It was shrapnel and it knocked him out of the fight. Evacuated to the rear, the brave Marine faced a needle. (4:59)

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Two weeks after his discharge, Marine Braswell Deen entered the University of Georgia law school, and two weeks after he graduated, he was running for office. After decades of public service, he still thinks about those nights on Peleliu. (2:06)

Brent Gulick

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It was a matter of duty. Just as his father answered the call when the Axis was on the move, Brent Gulick headed for the recruiter once he secured his college degree. The old man had been a B-17 pilot but the younger Gulick was denied the chance to fly because of poor eyesight. Well, if I can't fly them, I will jump out of them. (5:23)

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The guys in the dorm were mostly in agreement. They'd rather join the National Guard or even go to Canada than go fight in Vietnam. But one student named Brent Gulick had an uncle who served and suffered on Guadalcanal. How could he ever face him again if he didn't serve when there was a war to be fought? (2:55)

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After basic training and AIT, Brent Gulick headed to Fort Benning for OCS. But when he got there, there was no room for the new class. It was delayed. How'd you like to go to jump school in the meantime? Great idea but the NCO's that ran the school had it in for the officers-to-be. (9:53)