The date of infamy, Dec. 7, 1941, also marked the weekend that Thelma and Elmer Sheppard were married.
Everyone was asking, “Where is Pearl Harbor?” It was the start of a 60-year marriage that nearly ended on the beaches of Normandy and the killing fields of Bastogne.
Thelma sent an e-mail last Wednesday, the anniversary of the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944, after reading interviews with family members of D-Day veterans.
Her husband was in the 101st Airborne, wounded twice, 30 percent of his skull replaced with a plate. He was shot in the right thigh and was partially paralyzed but served in a wheelchair as a signal corpsman at the Battle of the Bulge. He received two Purple Hearts.
While Elmer served overseas, Thelma went to work for Western Union. She had no high school diploma because she had gone to work when her father died.
Elmer died Jan. 2. Thelma is still grieving. But she wanted to share her thoughts. She ended this way: “Have a beautiful war-free day because of these brave and honorable soldiers.”
June 6 and Dec. 7 have become anniversaries in the news business, too, dates that our readers want to remember. Coverage has met those expectations.
Sharp readers
- Last weekend, from Friday through Monday, the tides were wrong on A-2. Some readers planned to fish or take kayak trips or walk on the beach based on that information. Twelve people called. For another alternative, the Times-Union publishes a pocket-size tide chart that is good for six months. Send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to me at the address below.
- Two readers noticed the birthday item last weekend for singer Curtis Mayfield. Well, Mayfield died in 1999. Oops.
- A sharp reader noticed a photo in the Tuesday Business section of a Treasury employee holding a damaged $10 bill. But it showed a photo of Andrew Jackson, who is on the $20 bill. A call to the Bureau of Engraving in Washington, D.C. confirmed that the bill was counterfeit. The caption should have mentioned that fact.
- An Orange Park reader caught a mistake in a May 27 story about Pearl Harbor from The Washington Post. The loss of 1,177 people on the USS Arizona was said to be twice the number of Americans who died on Omaha Beach on D-Day. It appears that was reversed, since about 2,000 Americans died on Omaha Beach.
Parade replaced by USA Weekend
Starting today, the Parade Sunday supplement is being replaced in the Times-Union by USA Weekend. Some readers have already voiced their displeasure. A few are familiar with USA Weekend and consider it an inferior product. Some readers consider Parade a lifelong friend.
For those reasons, the best possible solution would have been to keep both publications. As Editor Patrick Yack explained in a front-page letter to the readers last Sunday, that was tried but Parade did not want to continue its relationship under those conditions. Please give USA Weekend a chance.
Looking for newcomers, natives
Later this summer, we would like to discuss some of the issues involving Jacksonville natives as well as newcomers.
If you would like to participate, please e-mail or write about yourself. Who are you, what are some of the issues you think deserve attention?
For purposes of the discussion, we’re defining a newcomer as someone who arrived less than two years ago. Natives should have attended elementary school in the area.
