My Name is Gerald R Weisenburn II. My dad, whom I am named after, was in the 18th Marine Regiment,1st Battalion (Major A.L.Vogt). He went into Tarawa Nov. 20, 1943, on Red Beach 2, first wave. He was wounded three diferent times and nearly blew himself up when he “unloaded” his flamethrower in the vent shaft of a large 200mm British “Long Tom & artillery piece. He needed to destroy the gun, as he puts it, “the gun was vaporizing the landing craft.”
Dad spent 28 months in medical facilities, including the USS Solace, Pearl Harbor Naval Hospital, and San Diago Naval Hospital. He is 81 years old and I can only hope I am as sharp as he is when and if I get to his age.
My eMail is cimbrination@aol.com.