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74 Years Later Memories Are Still Vivid For Pearl Harbor Survivor

A photo of Pearl Harbor survivor Joseph Mieleszko
WAMC

National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day was observed today at a western Massachusetts long term care facility that has the largest population of World War II veterans in New England.

About 100 residents and staff of the Massachusetts Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke assembled in the facility’s canteen for a ceremony that began with the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance led by 93-year-old Joseph Mieleszko, one of only a handful of Pearl Harbor survivors in western Massachusetts.

Mieleszko, a former resident of Hatfield, said he remembers vividly what happened 74 years ago.

"I think about it practically every night and wonder why I made it," he said.

He was a young technical sergeant in the U.S. Army on a weekend leave with other soldiers on Oahu when the surprise attack came on that Sunday morning.  Told the news, they started back to the Schofield Army Barracks, about 15 miles inland from the harbor where the ships of the Pacific Fleet were docked.

" We had to travel by the harbor. We could see the planes dropping the bombs. We could see the planes strafing sailors in the water," he recounted.

The barracks had been strafed by gunfire, but the switchboard equipment Mieleszko operated was not damaged. It was a put on a truck and taken to another part of the island to wait out a second attack many were convinced was coming, but never did.

" That night it was raining and whenever I touched my switchboard I would get a shock," he said. "But, I kept the communication going."

While the memories of war are vivid and emotional for Mieleszko, he also recalls how people reacted just a few years ago when they saw the Pearl Harbor Survivor license plate on his car.

" They would look at it, and then look at me and walk away with no comment, because they probably don't know what it means," said Mieleszko.

Paul Barabani, the superintendent of the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke, pledged to all the World War II veterans that they will never be forgotten.

"  We say to all of you, our veterans who have served, that we remember this day and all who have given the ultimate sacrifice to guarantee our freedom in this great land.  We thank you," he said to applause from the audience.

The ceremony included the unveiling of a panoramic photograph of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., that will be permanently displayed in the home’s recreation room.

More than half the home’s 275 residents are World War II veterans, according to deputy superintendent John Paradis.

" We have the largest population of  World War II veterans of any facility in New England, and we are very proud of that," said Paradis.  " The youngest age now is 88. We want to take every opportunity, every day to show our graditude  and appreciation to these veterans who did so much for us."

The Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce Monday unveiled a holiday ornament featuring an image of the Soldiers’ Home. Chamber president Kathy Anderson said it the latest in a series of ornaments that commemorate the city’s history.

" We wanted to give something back to our veterans and to the folks who work so hard ( at the Soldiers' Home)," she said.

The Holyoke Soldiers' Home 2015 holiday ornament
Credit WAMC
The ornament can be purchased from the Holyoke Chamber of Commerce for $25. $5 from each sale goes to support programs at the Soldiers' Home.

A portion of the proceeds from the ornament sales will go to support recreation and morale boosting programs at the Soldiers’ Home.

The record-setting tenure of Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno. The 2011 tornado and its recovery that remade the largest city in Western Massachusetts. The fallout from the deadly COVID outbreak at the Holyoke Soldiers Home. Those are just a few of the thousands and thousands of stories WAMC’s Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief Paul Tuthill has covered for WAMC in his nearly 17 years with the station.
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