When this edition begins to circulate, we will be remembering that fatal day seventy-seven years ago, when surprisingly the country was attacked by the imperial forces of Japan, by means of a devastating air attack to the naval base of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, home of the fleet from Pacific.
During the first hours of dawn on Sunday, December 7, 1941, waves of Japanese aircraft bombarded, almost annihilating, our naval force. When the attack ended, casualties on the US side were 2,403 dead and 1,178 injured in action, in addition to a long list of totally lost and / or damaged ships, as well as a large number of aircraft.
Although it was not an attack on North America, since Hawaii was the territory of the United States and not a member state of the union at that time, it provoked the United States to declare war on Japan, after a passionate speech before the Senate by then President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
This motivated George H.W. Bush to enlist in the US Naval Reserve on June 13, 1942. On his 18th birthday, he became one of the youngest naval aviators. He was commissioned as a teacher in the US Naval Reserve, on June 9th, 1943, days before turning 19 years old. During his service as a Navy pilot, his plane was hit and he was rescued by a submarine.
Bush was born on June 12, 1924 in Milton, Massachusetts and on January 6, 1945, he married Barbara Pierce de Rye. They had six children: George, Robin (who died of leukemia in 1953), Jeb, Neil, Marvin and Dorothy Bush Koch. Bush died on November 30, 2018 shortly after the death of his wife, and will be buried next to her as well as their daughter Robin, behind the George H.W. Presidential Library, in Houston, Texas.
Mr. Bush lived to see his son George W. Bush be elected as the 43rd president in 2000.
A message on the social networks of the USS George H. Bush (CVN 77), an aircraft carrier named after Bush and commissioned on January 10, 2009, says:
“Avengers, it is with a heavy heart we join the nation in mourning the passing of our namesake and 41st President, George H.W. Bush. A World War II Navy pilot, statesman, and loving father, he is a true example of selfless service to the country, and his legacy will remain a guiding light to all those who serve aboard our great ship that bears his name. In this time of sorrow, we are reminded of one of his lifelong principles, “Ceiling and Visibility Unlimited,” or CAVU, which as the president described, is meant to wish the best of weather and unlimited possibilities in one’s own life. We will forever honor his memory by carrying on his legacy of service. Fair winds and following seas, Mr. President.”
From this space we join the sentiment of these sailors. Rest in Peace, together with your wife and daughter, Mr. President.
