George George and Carol Gaines

00:00 Hello, my name is Carol Gaines.

00:05 Today is the 10th of March 2020. We are in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

00:12 And I'm here today with another. Oh how good that is good, but I must stand up.

00:20 Marine hear the Marines hymn George we need to stand up.

00:25 I am here with George George.

00:30 He is a Marine.

00:37 Okay, George here. We are. Tell me your name. My name is Jorge a George.

00:44 I am now 90 plus years old as a plus. It's only a few months.

00:51 That I made 90.

00:53 Today's date is March 10th.

01:02 Talk to him.

01:05 March 10th 2020 in Las Cruces, New Mexico

01:11 I am part of a interview.

01:17 I'm the talker.

01:20 And my partner is the questionnaire when I get tongue-tied, I don't think that happens to Hirsch.

01:30 Let's let's start at the beginning. I'm having em from someplace else. You're from someplace else. We are now in New Mexico. Let's start off. Where were you born? Where did you live? Tell me a little bit of your family background. I am Georgia George. My last name is originally Ashlyn 80s.

01:51 Don't ask me to spell it.

01:53 It's a Greek name.

01:55 I'm I was born to and raised by two Greek parents.

02:05 I love both of them their long-ago past.

02:14 I was born in West Virginia raised in Ohio.

02:18 Where I going to Marine Corps and

02:22 July 17th 1947

02:28 It was kind of a hard thing that I joined the corps.

02:33 My first thing was I was going to join the Army because it was easiest to get into then my friends talked me out of it. Oh good. Then I was going to join the Navy in one of my closest friends says George you'll never enjoy the Navy has not come he's cuz I'll put you aboard a ship and I know how you feel you like girl. You're going to board a ship. You will not see another girl 4 6 8 10 months maybe a year.

03:06 Tri-City, okay, that's enough of that.

03:10 So I decided I was going to Marine Corps, but I wasn't going to tell anybody.

03:15 Until it was too late.

03:17 When it became too late.

03:20 I told him and this is how old how old are you in Georgia was exactly 17000 little over 70 need a parent permission. I need it Mom and Dad. They had both both of them had to sign anyway.

03:37 At first first shot on it. They said no.

03:42 And that went for about 2 weeks and I sat on the front porch where we where I was living.

03:50 And now

03:52 Mom never saw me sitting down eating.

03:56 She kept trying to figure out why is he not eating?

04:02 And every time she asked me I talk whenever you're ready to sign the papers for Mom. I'll eat.

04:09 Little did she know that my sisters were feeding me on a cutie. Oh, you would not let that go by no. I never mom cooking. You bet. I had my share.

04:22 Anyway on the 17th of July at 47 is finally giving in.

04:30 Okay, George will sign the mom and dad. I took them both up to the

04:38 Office where I had to sign him and had him sign the papers.

04:43 And a signed and Mom cried cheap

04:47 She did her new thing and had you finished high school at that time. I graduated that year. Okay at 17 you graduated high school, correct and cover it matter fact. I was promised a job as a machinist.

05:06 With the Timken roller bearings tapered roller bearings because of my ability in a machine shop in school.

05:16 My teacher was going to get me a job straight in as a machinist. Sounds like you found your Niche and I told him thanks, but no thanks. He's a nose. Thanks his you can't get a better job than that. Isis one better.

05:34 This is where how I assume Joiner Marine Corps is you oh my God happy. Hello. Yeah, God help you.

05:45 Well, there was a lot of days that I was looking up for a little bit of help. So when you how long you been entered in 17, where did you go to bootcamp?

05:56 God that was a fine Sandy spot down to South Carolina.

06:03 Perris Island here I come Carolina. Yes.

06:07 How is your boot? And at the time I was a smoker?

06:12 I dug two graves for cigarette butts one was mine. And when was somebody else's?

06:20 I had to dig both the holes five by five by five.

06:26 That accomplished I started giving up cigarettes, but I I didn't follow through with it and I continued smoking.

06:37 At any rate

06:39 I am

06:42 I will sign in the mess hall.

06:46 And my mouth kind of overloaded my ability.

06:51 And a mouse stuff to a buck sergeant.

06:56 And he taught me a lesson.

06:59 You don't mouth off to Sergeant in the Marine Corps. They are the base of the Marine Corps. They are the ones who keep us going.

07:07 And to this day, I love that man. You beat the hell out of me.

07:13 And you probably deserved it as I'm still running off at the mouth. Anyway that accomplished when I got to my first sergeant.

07:28 He says Georgie's number to do you a favor and ask her. What time is how would you like to go to China?

07:36 As well

07:38 If that's where you want to send me he's around his is too many guys. Don't get to go there anymore. And I said well, okay send me.

07:46 So I went to China were you and Michelle sent as a machinist I went there as a machinist. I stayed with the machine machinist MOS all the time that I was in the corps MOS military occupational specialty couldn't get rid of it, but I still had my machinist MOS anything interesting in China.

08:12 A lot of things people

08:16 Scenery and tough times

08:20 We were not fighting China. Why was it a tough time?

08:25 The tough times were watching the poor people in China.

08:31 You got to know him. You got to kind of live their life and it's just a hard thing. So you were in China from 48 for how long?

08:45 We came back in.

08:48 49 if I remember right possibly 50

08:56 I remember that when I got there we had taken money from the mint aboard ship and it was dropped off in Shanghai.

09:10 $3000000 in cases

09:14 When we left China

09:17 We stopped and picked up.

09:22 40 some odd cases of money

09:26 And I X number of dollars. I don't know.

09:30 I don't know how much money they put in these case. Anyway, it was for some odd cases. They put him in the brig and we stood guard over those cases all the time. Where is it a short on a c

09:47 Don't ask me why but I'd give us something to do.

09:51 Besides playing The Pinnacle. Okay 7 day is hot we ran out of food.

09:59 We had that.

10:03 Muffins with boll weevils on top decoration. Yeah. Oh, yeah, you got to you got to eat and I was pretty good and we had boiled eggs.

10:16 That lasted for 7 days. We had boiled eggs in the morning with biscuits and in the evening, we had biscuits and boiled eggs.

10:29 If you want to catch up you want to this day you probably don't eat Weevil biscuits and hard boiled eggs. I don't need hard boiled eggs and I stay away from if it's of any kind. So glad you came back to us and 49 or 50 then what where were you?

10:51 I can't remember the name of the island Under the Bridge in San Francisco Treasure Island Treasure Island. Thank you ra doctor and I stayed there for a while.

11:06 I found a few nice places to go beer was pretty good. The women were better.

11:13 Sounds like a Marine.

11:15 I learned about the Marines. So what happened after that?

11:25 I know it's fire.

11:28 I am Korea broke out in that year in June Korea broke out. It did the war know the war.

11:40 Started in June

11:43 The Marine Corps stopped discharging Personnel on July 17th at noon.

11:53 As I was handed my birthday.

11:57 I got my discharge and I and the officer told me he says you're the last one. That's what you talk about.

12:07 He says Isis there's all kinds of guys waiting to get their discharge. We talkin about of the last one. He says don't you know I said, no. What is it? We're at War and what do you talk about World War?

12:24 Any procedure to tell me what was happening of America was not prepared. That's correct, or was we're not prepared. Anyway. Try to handle this chargeback.

12:38 And a man says no, you got it. You keep it.

12:43 I am frustrated in a little while that didn't work and he told me how I can get back in a core it took me 30 days.

12:53 During that time. I had a job with Allis Chalmers and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

13:01 I worked.

13:04 And

13:06 I had a station as a Millwright.

13:11 At any rate

13:13 I bet everybody. Goodbye.

13:15 And I went to Camp Lejeune.

13:19 That was 1950.

13:22 1951 Aeronautics cheer me later in 1950. I was ordered.

13:33 To Korea Marine started sending troops into Korea about September 1950. So you were in that first group that. Send.

13:46 I got the career.

13:49 I don't remember the port. I don't remember a whole lot of what happened.

13:56 I

13:59 Did the best I could with what I had to do with?

14:03 All I know is got it was cold.

14:07 And we started from there on foot.

14:12 One thing led to another and I

14:16 Ended up in an outfit and I can't remember the name of the outfit.

14:20 I was still in Machinist.

14:23 Machinist carrying a rifle every Marine is a Rifleman. That was my primary job was Rifleman.

14:30 But the

14:32 My NCO says George I need a driver is it you know how to drive a Jeep That's Just Hold Ya course so he gave me a little job is running a Jeep from World War wheeler station.

14:47 Joined next Camp. I don't know how far was probably about 15-20 miles Maybe.

14:56 I drove down and on our way down. I saw a line of Tanks, Army.

15:03 My guy loves you guys are going someplace and I went on done did my job turn around and came back and on our way back. I had to cross a bridge.

15:14 Concrete bridge

15:16 At what point are you a narcissist people Gathering and I looked and it was a tank laying on his on his top at the bottom of the bridge.

15:28 Is going over the side of the bridge it went over the side.

15:33 And I quick ran down and I was talking to somebody else's what's it what's happened here? He's a welder tank as you can see went over to throw over the bridge.

15:44 Isis is anybody anybody still in the tank? This is yeah the crew this is an American Tank and was an American Tank Army.

15:56 Well while I was in Camp Lejeune I learned about tanks.

16:01 As luck would have it. I became familiar with the interior of tanks and the exterior in the mechanics of them excetera excetera.

16:13 So I says those Captain Isis camera I said, why don't you get these guys out of here he's just what we can't get in either way we can't get in

16:23 He should all I had just recovered. They're all closed as a tank went over. They were all closed on the top of the tank and it was laying on this couch laying on the top and all the all the teachers were underground dangerous. So I said, why don't you dig a hole underneath were where we were standing here. He says, yeah, but he says white when we get there uses. That's a small hatch.

16:49 I see why you didn't get a little guy go in there and do what you got to do is look around yourself and

16:58 Everybody that was around me.

17:01 Where are Koreans none of them spoke English?

17:06 Nobody's it was English could speak Korean fortunately still peaceful peaceful. Anyway, I should give me a shovel if you got a shovel.

17:20 This is no Isis. Okay.

17:25 So a manufacturer to shovel out of couple of sticks and a piece of metal and they dug a hole Guardian underneath the underneath the manhole opened it got the tank.

17:41 I was able to get to the release for the opening on the floor of the tank.

17:49 And I was able to ripping up for the day got it open after I released it. They took it off and they got in and took everybody out. How many troops are inside you remember? I don't know don't care. They got out. They got out there were all unconscious when I got there at least a appeared that way. Did you get the tank out? I don't know where I got out get back in my Jeep and I hauled ass.

18:20 Good job Marine, because when I got there my my ncoic chewed me out because I was late getting back.

18:30 And what comes next by the Army captain?

18:36 Medal of Honor

18:39 For what? I had done to get the people out of the tank and I told him I suppose I didn't join a Marine Corps for medals and ribbons and

18:48 Message you and throw it away. He says.

18:52 Sorry, he's a sergeant tell this man what he's got to do with this.

18:58 Any told me that I have to keep it.

19:01 He gave me the paperwork with it after everybody cleared up.

19:07 I threw everything away George everything I threw it all away.

19:13 Later on in my

19:17 Tour

19:20 I earned another one.

19:23 And it went by the same place. I throw it away.

19:28 When I explain honorable, man when I finally retired

19:34 I finally started putting my ribbons on outside real I better put those two on. I don't think I've ever seen you with all your ribbons. I have 16 16 ribbons. I I don't count. Okay, let's talk a little bit more you spend how many years in the Marine Corps?

19:53 10 years in the Marine Corps 10 years in the Air Force. I retired with the Air Force retirement. I am still a marine. I live as a marine and I will die as a Marine.

20:07 Santa sounds just like a Marine.

20:10 So you came from West Virginia you came to Ohio traveled overseas and now you're in Las Cruces. How long have you been here phone numbers? I don't even count time anymore. I don't care that Marines find other Marines how many Marines have you discovered? A lot of a lot of my belonging to the Marine Corps Association? I'm a member of the Sanford fi

20:41 Organization is the

20:45 Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, Virginia

20:51 I'm a sponsor. I

20:55 I love the Marine Corps and

20:59 I'll fight tooth-and-nail for him and I'm a marine also and I have met you at Marine Corps League in the name of the Detachment is

21:09 Forever and ever help out o Diablo

21:13 Devil Dogs always always

21:18 And I know also you have been on in Las Cruces on Honor Flight was about Honor Flight, but it's a great thing to do. It's a time time well spent.

21:36 I read good day and good luck. Thanks for the time. I'll remember all those stories Semper Fi Marine oorah.