Iwo Jima
In March, I had the opportunity to help 11 World War II Veterans from the 7th CD and throughout Colorado complete their return to Iwo Jima to mark the 65th anniversary of one of the most historic battles of World War II.
Their return to Iwo Jima was truly meant to be, and was nothing short of a miracle.
The group planned for more than three years to take this trip to return for the 65th Anniversary. The veterans were between the ages of 85 and 93, and they knew this would be their last opportunity to return to the place the fought for so long ago.
They took commercial air to Tokyo then Okinawa and had a charter flight scheduled to take them to Iwo Jima. When they arrived in Okinawa, they just missed being in a 7.0 earthquake, and they were under tsunami warnings after the quake hit. There were a couple of health-related problems early on, and then on top of it all, the originally-scheduled charter flight to Iwo Jima from Okinawa was diverted for earthquake relief efforts in Haiti.
I became involved in trying to help complete this last leg of their journey to Iwo Jima after this original charter flight fell through.
The group contacted my office, as well as the offices of some other Members of Congress, but it was my office that started making phone calls to see what we could do to help. No one else would help. We made phone calls to the Marines, the Dept. of Defense and the White House for 4-5 days before they were scheduled to go to Iwo Jima. But, we kept running into roadblocks – legal issues, mechanical issues with different planes, no planes were in the area, the island was only open for a limited amount of time… at every corner there was a new knot to cut through.
But I was determined to see this through and leave no stone unturned. I spent hours on the phone – from the car, from the airplane (the Frontier flight attendant almost kicked me off because I wouldn’t hang up the phone as we started to take off), from outside the Capitol. Quite simply, failure was not an option. I told my staff we weren’t going to take “no” for an answer.
On Tuesday, March 2, I made a last-ditch effort by phoning the Japanese Ambassador and the legal counsel for the Marine Corps. The Japanese Ambassador, who I didn’t know at all, agreed they could keep the island open a couple more days to give the vets time to get there. I kept working with the Marine Corps lawyers on a way we could get them there. Finally, just as a national Fox News ticker was scrolling across TV screens that 11 Colorado veterans were stranded in Okinawa and no one would help them get to Iwo Jima, I got a call back from the Marine Corps lawyers who told me our veterans had 20 minutes to get to a plane that was gassed and ready to take them to Iwo Jima. It was 4:45 p.m. on March 2 – and the vets were 16 hours ahead of us in time. I got word to them in Okinawa and shortly thereafter they boarded a cargo plane that took them to Iwo Jima.
This is truly one of my proudest accomplishments. I can’t express to you how proud I am of these men, of my country, and the determination of all those who helped these men make this journey.
I told my staff – and the White House – that we brought 12 men home from the moon with Apollo 13, we were gonna get these men to Iwo Jima. “No” was not an option.
And, that’s really the lasting lesson these men and all of those who serve in our military show us each and every day.
We are a great nation, made up of courageous people willing to sacrifice for our country. And we can do anything if we set our minds to it and find ways to cut through the bureaucracy.
The stories these veterans have to tell teach us important lessons about the resilience of our people, communities and nation.
I’m proud I helped the gears of government work for these brave men and help them complete their journey.
I cannot express my admiration, respect and thanks enough to these men, and the Marine Corps for their selfless service to our country – then and now.
