World War II Honoree
World War II Veteran
David L. Bier
Branch of Service
U.S. Marine Corps
Hometown
Washington, District Of Columbia
Honored By
Mr. & Mrs. Douglas W. Gerni
Japan bombed Pearl Harbor 3 weeks after my fourteenth birthday, which lead to 4 years of excitement and adventure. Everyone was caught up in the war effort. In Junior High, everyone was involved in some related war project. In woodworking class, we built scaled model airplanes for Navy pilots and crew identification. I was made an honorary Ensign. Civil defense programs were set up for air raid wardens in each neighborhood. I was a messenger for four Wardens and Taft Junior High School was the message center. We had weekly drills where the entire neighborhood was blacked out. Wardens checked each house to make sure no lights showed and we ran messages back and forth on who showed lights. Civil Defense Wardens and messengers also held demonstrations on incendiary bombs and how they worked and what to do to put them out. These demonstrations were held at the Taft Junior High School playground. My mother was involved in many activities such as Red Cross and civil rationing functions when this started. I was one of her helpers giving out food and gas ration stamps at the school once a month. We participated in neighborhood scrap metal drives, picking up old radiators, and we saved fat and grease. During all of this we helped dig up backyards for victory gardens. I had a paper route. For 1 year, I helped on a dairy farm. I finished Junior High and because of my woodshop and drafting, I got a job at Bolling Air Force as a SP1, draftsman. I had started taking flying lessons at Hyper Valley. I was too young for the Air Force, too tall at 6 foot 2 inches and had hay fever. I doctored my birth certificate, got a draft card. I went to the Marines and was accepted. While in basic training the A-Bombs were dropped. Within 10 weeks, I was shipped overseas landing in Tsingtao, China as a replacement Private First Class in 22nd Regiment, 6th Marine Division. I returned to the states in 1947, stayed in Marine to keep from being drafted. In December 1950, I was recalled as a Corporal to active duty for Korea. I reported in January of 1951 and served 11 months stateside. I did not go overseas the second time.