In WWII, Frank Ludden was a combat engineer, promoted up through the enlisted ranks, making Master Sergeant in record time. Postwar, he graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering then went on to a highly successful professional career of 42 years. But, despite those impressive lifetime achievements, today he modestly deflects attention from himself to other things hes proudest of. He says, I have a brother that is famous, Allen Ludden, he was host of the TV show Password for ten years, married to one of the Golden Girls, Betty White. Allen died in 1981, but Betty is still acting (Betty is in the recently released movie, The Proposal, with Sandra Bullock). He...
Patriot Stories from the United States Army
JAMES LOGAN (JIM) BROWN
James Logan Brown, a Charter Member who helped in creating Chapter 1919 is an Army Korean War veteran. He was a platoon leader in Company L, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, wounded during the defense of the Naktong River Line, in the early days of fighting to hold the Pusan Perimeter in the Summer of 1950. His wounds were severe, requiring medical evacuation to the United States. He was a career officer who originally hailed from Louisiana. He had later assignments in the 6th Infantry and 7th Infantry Regiments and with the Army Rangers, and is also a Vietnam veteran, having served there, 1965-1967. He had memorable experiences during his Cold War assignment in...
JOE S. CASTRO
Joe S. Castro was born in 1921, the next-to-youngest born into this large Castro family of Austin, Texas that would send four sons off to war. His younger brother, also wounded in action, was our late Patriot, L.C. Castro (chapter charter member and our first chaplain), featured in the PATRIOT BULLETIN with a story similar to this in the August 1997 issue and that may also be found on our website. We are overdue for saying more about Joe and L.C.’s family, and will make up for that here. Parents Ladislao and Leonarda Castro had come from Mexico during World War I. They had two daughters and three sons when they arrived in Austin, making their first home here in a downtown...
RENESSA GERHARDT
Renessa L. Gerhardt was born in Lubbock, Texas in 1985. When she was five years old, her family moved to Saudi Arabia. They lived in Yanbu (about an hour away from Jeddah) where Renessa attended the Yanbu International School until, when she was age ten, they returned to Texas. The Gerhardts then lived, initially in Denton, where Renessa finished elementary school. They next moved to Houston where she graduated from Bleyl Middle School and then attended Cy-Creek High School until (having skipped 11th grade) mid-way through her senior year. Then, when she was seventeen, the family returned to Saudi Arabia, once again to Yanbu. Renessa graduated from the Yanbu International...
SCOTT C. GARRETT
Scott Garrett was born in Macon, Georgia in 1970. When he was a small child his family moved to Pensacola, Florida and he grew up there and attended public schools. He graduated from Washington High School with the Class of 1989, and went on to attend Florida State University until 1992. He then was employed by GEICO Insurance for a number of years, but got to doing some serious thinking about career choices. Scott was attracted to the military, in part by the experiences of his father and grandfather both of whom had served as NCOs in the Air Force. He enlisted in the Army. It took some doing, Scott is a big man, six foot six, and that required waivers, but he entered...
WILLIAM H. MAYS
William H. Mays was born in Round Rock, Texas in 1925. When he was about nine years old, his family moved to Austin where he continued to attend public schools until, at age 17, he enlisted for service during WWII. He was in his Junior year at L.C. Anderson High School (the old segregated L.C. Anderson High for Black-only students) when he dropped out, entering active duty in the Marine Corps in October 1943. He was sent to Monteford Point at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina where he was assigned to the 20th Marine Depot Company. Prior to WWII, there had never before been any Black troop units in the history of the Marine Corps; and William reported in just when large numbers of...
JOHN WILLIAM MORRISSET
John William Morrisset passed into the arms of God on July 13, 2008. John is survived by Elizabeth Morrisset, his wife of 57 years and by his three daughters, Louise, Nancy and Brenda. John was a decorated veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, a successful local businessman and was recognized as a leader in community service activities in San Marcos. Born October 23, 1931 in Lubbock, Texas to L. B. and Anita Morrisset, John was the youngest of three boys and graduated from Lubbock High School in May 1950. Missionaries from Korea spoke at the church where John attended and told how desperately the Koreans needed our help. John enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps August, 1950. His...
WILLIAM F. (BILL) KING
William F. King was born in Reno, Texas in 1919. He enlisted in the Army from Fort Worth, Texas and was sworn into service on July 3, 1940 at the Induction Center in Dallas. He was assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division as a member of Service Company, 9th Infantry Regiment at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio where the division was stationed in 1940 and 1941. The division participated in several maneuvers in Texas and Louisiana until November 27, 1942 when they moved to Camp McCoy, Wisconsin for winter training. In September 1943 the 2nd Infantry Division was moved to Camp Shanks, New York and then sailed from the New York Port of Embarkation on October 8th. They arrived in...
HADRON “IZELL” BANKSTON
Hadron Izell Bankston was born in Malta, Texas (Bowie County near New Boston) in 1925. He has been called Izell all of his life. As a small child his family moved to Kaufman County and while he was growing up they lived variously at Kemp, Blue Bank, Mabank and Kaufman. He was attending Kaufman High School when America entered the war and he wanted to volunteer immediately. However, he was only seventeen and his mother refused her permission. So, Izell bided his time until he turned eighteen and enlisted in the Navy on his birthday. Doing so meant dropping out of high school before finishing his senior year. Izell entered service as a selective volunteer and after eight...
RALPH D. ERICKSON
The following story was derived from a story written by Karina Erickson about her father Ralph Erickson as a class project at Lago Vista High School. Read Karina's original paper at the end of this Patriot Story In 1922, RALPH D. ERICKSON was born to parents of Swedish heritage in Benesford, South Dakota. At the age of nine, in order to survive the great Depression, his family moved to Sweden for a year and upon returning decided to start over in Chicago, Illinois, where his mother had been offered a nursing position. Erickson was very proud of his heritage, spoke fluent Swedish, and he grew up to be a big six-foot-one, blond headed athlete. Erickson was on a swimming...
WALLACE E. (PETE) SNELSON
Texas State Senator, Retired Wallace E. Snelson was born in Grandfalls, Texas in 1923, into a pioneer farm and ranch family (He was one of 5 brothers to serve overseas during WWII, and a sixth brother served in the Korean War). Pete, a long-time small town nickname, graduated from Grandfalls High School in 1939 and then worked for the next year as news editor of the Grandfalls Gazette. In 1940, having secured a scholarship, he enrolled in the Texas College of Mines in El Paso (now the University of Texas at El Paso). Soon after America entered the war, Pete enlisted in the Armys Enlisted Reserve Corps, a program for college students. A nationwide call-up for active duty...
THOMAS W. MATTHEWS
Thomas W. Matthews was born in 1922 in Luling, Texas. He grew up on a farm and as a student he was active in the Future Farmers of America. He graduated from Luling High School in 1939 and then got a job at the Luling Demonstration Foundation Farm where he worked rotating shifts between the dairy, poultry and livestock demonstration units. After just a few months there, he found the $17 monthly pay just wasnt enough to live on, even with room and board furnished, so he went to San Antonio and went to work for Rath Meatpacking Company. He had been with the Rath company for about a year and a half when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Tom volunteered for Aviation Cadet...