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John Laster

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The SS Arthur Dobbs had the toughest armed guards in the fleet, according to John Laster, so tough they were thrown out of Egypt after an epic bar fight with British soldiers. Assigned to the SS Glenn Curtiss, they finished war duty in Tinian. (8:11)

John Lummus

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Draftee John Lummus asked for the Air Corps but that service was full so he chose the Navy. He figured at least he would have a bed. Then he fell ill during basic training, which accidentally set his future course in the Hospital Corps. (5:19)

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Out of basic, the first assignment for John Lummus was to open a pre-radio school for Naval trainees in an old high school in Chicago. A request from his pastor back home in Georgia led to a memorable visit. (4:16)

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John Lummus shipped out on a large vessel to the Pacific theater, but it had a malfunction and the crew was reassigned while at Pearl Harbor. To get out of the hot sun, he answered a call for a typist at the Naval hospital. Then, finally, he got his berth on a ship...of sorts. (3:03)

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To describe his experiences aboard a converted weather ship based out of Pearl Harbor, John Lummus must first ask the question, "Have you ever seen the TV show McHale's Navy? (3:03)

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John Lummus found himself representing the Hospital Corps on a small weather ship without any real medical training. He managed to do his job well and recalls a case in which a power drill from the tool shop served a valuable medical function. (3:50)

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Somewhere, John Lummus had acquired a beat up, old Kodak camera. He got a developing kit and he spent his spare time aboard a weather ship taking pictures of everything. His skipper let him take the pictures with him, but he had to make a promise. (4:42)

John Mahmarian

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John Mahmarian was a pre-med student when the attack on Pearl Harbor sent shock waves through the nation. He entered a Navy program that would allow him to finish school and then receive a commission. The naval training he received then was unlike any schooling he had ever encountered. (5:01)

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When John Mahmarian joined the crew of LCI-500, he'd never so much as stood a watch. He got plenty of practice in the convoy that dodged German subs during the Atlantic crossing. After dealing with some ungrateful British soldiers in a pub, the Yanks got down to business, training for the coming invasion of Normandy. (5:56)

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About a week before D-Day, the skipper went to a meeting and came back with a thick notebook detailing the plans for the fleet of LCI's. John Mahmarian was the Executive Officer of LCI-500 and he and his captain were very careful to safeguard the secrets in the book. (2:41)