| Remembering December 7th and the Greatest Generation |
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| By Edward M. Flynn |
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I read those words aboard USS THE SULLIVANS (DDG 68) while on active duty in the U.S. Navy, as we pulled into historic Castletownbere, County Cork, Ireland, the ancestral home of the five Sullivan brothers who all perished in World War II. Albert, Francis, George, Joseph and Madison Sullivan, descendants of the O'Sullivan-Beara Clan, enlisted in the U.S. Navy. George wrote a letter requesting the five brothers and two of their friends be allowed to serve on the same U.S. ship. The family and their friends eventually join the crew of USS Juneau (CL 52), a cruiser in the South Pacific. Juneau sank November 13, 1942, after suffering a fatal blow from a Japanese torpedo during the Battle of Guadalcanal. All five brothers died. The memory and emotion about the Sullivan family are still strong in the hearts of the American people.
The entire town of Castletownbere turned out for the historic arrival of the U.S. Navy warship, to honor not only the five Sullivan brothers, but all Irishmen who left Ireland to come to America, and who served and died for our country in time of war. The Sullivan family left Ireland during the famine, eventually settling in Waterloo, Iowa.
It was a great honor to wear the uniform of the U.S. Navy and be in a country where it all began for my family as well. Irish and American dignitaries attended the moving ceremony, as the Sullivan family members from both sides of the Atlantic stood at attention to hear both the United States and the Republic of Ireland National Anthems being played.
I also thought about another heroic American who also heard the words of President Roosevelt after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This young man was from South Boston; he also perished with the five Sullivan brothers stationed aboard Juneau. His name was Martin F. McDonough.
On December 7, let's all stop and think for a moment how this day, 64 years ago, changed the lives of so many millions of American families. It was by their sacrifice in answering the call for service to our country that they rightfully and deserved to be called "The Greatest Generation."
Edward Flynn is in the U.S. Navy Reserve and previously served on active duty, including a deployment aboard USS THE SULLIVANS (DDG 68).
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