Stories of Faith and Courage from World War II

March 24

A Sharp Tongue

Life is never easy aboard a navy ship. The quarters are cramped, the days and nights are long, and wartime deployments can seem unending. In addition to regular duties, everyone stands watches at ever-changing hours, interrupting any sense of a normal routine. Fear, frustration, fatigue, and the virtual absence of alone time make friction among crew members inevitable. One sailor’s advice to his shipmates was published in his ship’s newsletter to remind everyone to: “Be kind! It’s so easy to make a sarcastic remark that may hurt a shipmate. Besides, sometimes a man is not being so brilliant as he thinks.”¹¹¹

There are times when every one of us gets frustrated with other people. I am especially guilty of voicing displeasure at clerks and service workers who don’t seem to be as conscientious as I think they should be. There is very specific biblical instruction in both the Old and New Testaments advising us to be careful of what we say. Proverbs tells us, “Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing”(Proverbs 12:18), and “He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity”(Proverbs 21:23). These are words to remember when feeling impatient toward others.

My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.

—James 1:19

March 25 The Gear That Saved His Life

The Arctic weather was at its worst. The air temperature was thirty degrees below zero, and the entire ship was caked with ice. Gale force winds had dispersed the convoy after leaving Murmansk, leaving the SS Puerto Rican steaming alone, under radio silence. At 10:00 p.m. on March 9, 1943, a violent explosion rocked the ship.

August Wallenhaupt was awakened in his bunk and knew immediately what had happened. He had experienced being torpedoed before. He didn’t panic. He had the gear on hand for this disaster, and he knew how to use it. One journalist recounted his actions: “Wallenhaupt took time to dress warmly; he slipped on his rubber lifesaving suit, put on his life jacket over the suit and then put on a knee-length woolen seaman’s coat with a hood to protect his head. This is the gear that saved his life.”¹¹²

Due to the heavy ice, the Puerto Rican ’s lifeboats couldn’t be launched. Wallenhaupt found himself in the water and, unable to swim, managed to stay afloat just long enough to find a small doughnut shaped raft. After getting into the raft, he helped seven others aboard. On the morning of the third day a destroyer discovered the tiny raft. All were frozen to death except August Wallenhaupt. The young seaman survived because he was able, in the chaos of a sinking ship, to calmly prepare for the worst. By doing the right thing first, all his subsequent actions paid off in his survival.

This story dramatically illustrates the importance of taking care of life’s most important tasks first. Our relationship to God should be at the top of the list. When this relationship is solid, every other part of our lives will make sense. This spiritual preparation will ensure our ultimate and eternal survival and should be our first priority in normal times, before we come face to face with a crisis.

He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built.

—Luke 6:48

March 26 Prolonged Suffering

August Wallenhaupt made it into his tiny raft missing only one important item: his heavy fur-lined gloves. His hands were numb in minutes. Even though he was fully clothed in his survival gear, he also lost feeling in his legs. He did a lot of praying during the three days he was exposed to the brutal Arctic elements. By the time he was rescued he was in a semiconscious state.

Safe at last, the real pain began for the young seaman. His hands were swollen to three times normal size and were white with frostbite. He was kept alive by injections of blood plasma, intravenous feeding, and morphine. Wallenhaupt unfortunately lost both legs below the knee and most of his fingers, but miraculously survived. He not only survived physically, but he became a legend at the Staten Island Marine Hospital for his perpetual good humor. He even courted a clerk at the hospital whom he later married.

A fellow seaman paid tribute to this brave young sailor: “August Wallenhaupt symbolizes the sufferings that hundreds of other seamen have had to endure during torpedoings and he also expresses the same courage and cheerfulness that are indicative of the seamen who have been within reaching distance of death.”¹¹³

A close brush with death may cause fleeting feelings of euphoria. However, to maintain a positive outlook through prolonged suffering requires another level of courage. This seaman’s optimistic attitude was amazing and rare. Few of us can count on having such strength within ourselves. The only reliable source of this kind of courage is the same source that sustained the apostles through their suffering: the amazing love of our living Savior, Jesus Christ.

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.

—1 Peter 4:12–13

March 27 A Jubilant Mood

The Canadian ship Kamsack had been through a rough deployment. Days of mountainous seas and freezing rain had sapped the crew’s strength and spirit. Sent to rescue a torpedoed ship under the worst possible conditions, they had labored and suffered at their duty stations aboard the small corvette. Frank Curry described his feelings as this ordeal came to an end on Christmas Eve:

We staggered into Sydney harbour this Christmas Eve, feeling pretty good about accomplishing our mission. What a feeling to tie up securely to a jetty where everything is still—the crew in a jubilant mood, and I am no exception. Make and mend in the afternoon and we spent it cleaning our mess decks. Duty watch for me—on Quartermaster from 20002400, and I saw Christmas Day come in from the frozen gangway. Celebrated by taking a hot shower and climbing into my hammock at 0100.¹¹⁴

There are few satisfactions like that of successfully completing a difficult job. This wartime sailor ushered in Christmas Day in pretty miserable conditions on a small and battered ship, but he nevertheless knew that he was