1947 Robert "Bob" Carr writes, “I was originally in the Class of '45 but at the end of my freshman year I enlisted in the Army Air Corps pilot training program. It was my good fortune to remain in the states and, while trained for combat, missed that experience. I returned to Graceland for the spring semester 1946. There were quite a few veterans in that semester who had time at Graceland before entering the service. In the Acacia for '46 we were listed as "Second Semester Sophomores." He lives in Chestertown, MD. ((bobgene@dmv.com)) J. Dewey Chandler served in the Navy from 1944-45 as a medic, working with plastic surgeons. He was stationed primarily at the Great Lakes Naval Station north of Chicago. Dewey was just finishing his training in plastic surgery when World War II ended. Like so many guys, he finished his tour of duty and then came to Graceland. He lives in Yakima, WA. (509-457-7668) Harry A. Dennis served in India, China and Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) during WW II (from 1944-46) with the Military Intelligence Service. In China he was attached to The Flying Tigers. He was a cryptographic technician. He lives in Boise, ID. (hadlmd2@earthlink.net) Merle Harmon served in the Navy from 1944-46, primarily on an LST, one of the large, flat-bottomed ships used to land personnel and equipment on beachheads. He made three landings at Okinawa, landing tanks and their crews. He was a helmsman, what he calls “a glorified taxi driver.” He adds, “LSTs were good boats because torpedoes would just slide underneath them.” He lives in Arlington, TX. ((merle@merleharmon.com)) Orville L. Hiles Hiles served in the Navy during WW II, primarily aboard the USS Luce. He passed away on November 20, 2005, just shortly after being interviewed for this special section on alumni veterans. See his story in the Graceland's Greatest Generation section of the magazine. He lived in Lamoni, IA. Oliver Houston served stateside in the Army during the Korean War. He was a field organist for the infantry, playing a portable, folding pump organ. He remembers having trouble fitting his knees under the small instrument. He lives in Lamoni, IA. (ohouston@grm.net) Melvin Albert Jones served in the Navy aboard the USS Long Island, a small aircraft carrier which was a converted oil tanker. During his two years on the Long Island, the ship ferried new aircraft to Pacific islands like New Guinea, Kwajalein and Eniwetok and brought back Japanese prisoners and reusable aircraft parts. Melvin lives in Coos Bay, OR. (541-267-5795) John S. Parrish served in the Army during the Korean War, from 1951-53. He served at Ft. Riley, KS and Ft. Eustice, VA as a clerk typist and education specialist. He lives in Overland Park, KS (john.dorsey@juno.com) Malcolm Ritchie served in the Army Air Force from 1941-46. He was a night fighter pilot in the Pacific during WW II. He lives in Miamisburg, OH. (malritchie@netscape.com) Joseph H. "Joe" Sage piloted B-24 bombers from an airbase on the Adriatic coast of Italy. He flew 50 missions to Northern Italy, France, Yugoslavia, Austria, Romania and Greece. As the Allies invaded Italy and began marching north, make-shift airbases were constructed in a number of places along the Adriatic coast - runways were constructed by laying down heavy steel mesh. There were about 100 aircraft at Joe's base. The bombing runs Joe and his 10-man crew made were often part of huge operations involving hundreds of aircraft from many bases. "There were some pretty big deals with the sky full of planes," Joe remembers. They bombed enemy airplane factories, ball-bearing factories and refineries. He remembers missions when there were as many as 1,500 aircraft involved. He lives in Brookline Station, MO. (417-889-4039)		Class Year 1934 | 1937 1938 | 1939 1940 | 1941 1942 | 1943 1947 | 1948 1949 | 1950 1951 | 1952 1953 | 1954 1955 | 1956 1958 | 1959 1960 | 1962 1963 | 1964 1966 | 1967 1968 | 1969 1970 | 1972 1973 | 1976 1978 | 1979 1982 | 1983 1984 | 1985 1986 | 1989 1994 | 1996 1997 | 1998 1999 | 2000 2003 | 2004