World War II Honoree

Bernard L. Peipert, Sr.

Branch of Service

U.S. Marine Corps

Hometown

Alton, Illinois

Honored By

Children and Grandchildren

1st Battalion, Company C, 2nd Regiment, 2nd Division, Fleet Marine Force; Rank: Platoon Sergeant; Medals Awarded: 2 Presidential Unit Citations, Silver Star, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with 4 Campaign Stars, WWII Victory Medal, American Campaign Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Theatre of Operations, South Pacific Area; Pearl Harbor bombed on a Sunday (12/7/41) and he enlisted the following Monday. Eighteen days later, he was in boot camp at Camp Elliott. Six months later, aboard ship, heading for Guadalcanal. Landed on Florida Island, and then Tulagi the next day. A few weeks later, landed on Guadalcanal, 30 miles behind the lines. They took out a Japanese command post and then marched for three days to reach the Marine line. On the way, they helped rescue 4 pilots forced to land in the water. Continued to fight the Japanese on Guadalcanal for almost 11 months before being shipped to New Zealand for rest and training. While in New Zealand, he was hospitalized multiple times with malaria; Gilbert Islands Campaign: Battle of Tarawa. They were on Tarawa for three days. From there, they regrouped in Hawaii. In Hawaii, they trained mostly at night on WWII destroyers. They were preparing to land in the Mariana Islands one night before the invasion. Unfortunately, the Japanese were able to keep the beach covered with smoke so planes were never able to get a picture of the beach. Plans were changed, and they went in with the normal landing; Battle of Saipan-1 month, Battle of Tinian-3-4 days; From there, the original battalion was being sent back to the States. He went to Camp Pendleton, California, and was given a 30-day leave. He then served as an instructor at Camp Pendleton until the end of the war. He was Discharged 09/29/1945.