Every year, the Waires and the Wilhelms gather at the The John Milton Wilhelm Post No. 6052.
We remember.
We reflect.
On September 11, 1943 my uncle was being evacuated from Salerno, Italy aboard the U.S.S. Savannah to a base hospital in North Africa. A German dive bomber dropped an aerial bomb that hit the Savannah's forward gun turret, penetrating the deck and exploding in the ship's sick bay, killing all of its occupants.
On September 14th, my uncle and the rest of the fatally injured were buried at sea off the coast of Malta.
'After the war was over, a group of veterans got together and decided to organize a Veterans of Foreign Wars Post. The name of John Milton Wilhelm was selected because in him they had a composite of all those non-military men that answered the call of his country in time of crisis. Like thousands of others who served, Milt was not a member of any special class of our American society, nor did he do anything spectacular in life -- but, as an American he did what every citizen has done since this great country was founded -- he answered the call for military service to protect the Freedom that we Americans have enjoyed for so many years -- and as many others, he gave his life to the service of his country'
