Letter from Paul T. Silance, December 7, 1983

Letter from Paul T. Silance, December 7, 1983

Veterans--Correspondence; Aerial attacks; World War, 1939-1945

A handwritten letter to Joseph Ogrodnik Jr from Paul T. Silance, dated December 7, 1983. Silance wrote "after I got over the shock of reliving a traumatic experience of some 38 years, I tried to search my memory for that boy's face. Frankly, I did not succeed." While he does not specify who he's referring to, it seems likely "that boy" is Francis Ogrodnik. He goes on to describe briefly the events of April 6, 1945, stating that he was "stationed as Captain's phone tacker" and was thus was on the bridge when the plane struck. He references a copy of the memorial service that he sent Ogrodnik, but it's not clear if it was included in this mailing or was something Ogrodnik already had. He notes that while he is not sure of the exact fate of Francis Ogrodnik's remains, it was likely that he was buried in a memorial grave on Okinawa. The letter is written in black ink on lined white paper, and is two single-sided pages.

1983

Ogrodnik Collection

Correspondence

2pp

CPL-OGRODNIK-065