Re: coming home

The ship, Joe P. Martinez pulled into Pier 91 around November 16th, 1951 and off we went to board buses to go to Fort Lewis, Washington.

Once we were on base, women were lined up on the streets, as well as some very stupid G.I.'s. The women were holding signs, saying Welcome Home, Glad you made it back as well signs indicating how much blood they had donated. It kind of brought tears to my eyes, knowing how those woman were worried about the kids who went over and were thankful we got back.

Now the G.I.'s lining the route were yelling that they took good care of our wives/girl friends while we were in Korea and that they serviced all the women they could.   They bet we were all rear area soldiers. When that started, nothing was said by us, then those in the buses started yelling that there was a bunch of empty foxholes waiting for them or a mattress cover, along with a few choice words.

In a short time, it got pretty hot and some of the kids who now had become men, were trying to get out the windows of the bus to get at the jerks on the route and had to be restrained by Sgt.'s riding with us.

That was my home coming to the great U.S. of A. Was discharged in Camp Carson and on Thanksgiving Day, November of 1951, I got off a Constellation at Midway Airport in Chicago.   Was met by my mother and grandmother, then went home to a Thanksgiving dinner, the likes I had never saw. The whole family was there and had to eat in shifts as not enough seats.

But I really think the "killer" was the next day when I was standing in front of the house in uniform. One of my so called buddies drove up and yelled out "What the hell you doing in that uniform? Did you go back into the service?" Seems he never knew I was gone for over a year.I was hoping he would get drafted soon. And the great looking blonde I had dated prior to Korea and who wrote those nice letters, well the guy that took my place was never drafted. We had one date and she said "good bye."

So much for being welcomed home from Korea. It is so hard trying to forget what you do not want to remember.

    John Korea 1951