D-Day and Beyond, 70 Years Later
Presented By: Charles S. Shoup, Club Member
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Charles Shoup
Charlie’s talk chronicled a World War II tour of Europe that he and his wife took last fall.
First stop was Bletchley Park, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, the central site of the
United Kingdom's Government Code and Cypher School, which during the Second World
War
regularly penetrated the secret communications of the Axis Powers, most importantly the
German Enigma and Lorenz ciphers.
Next stop was Southwick House, an estate in Hampshire, England. In 1943, with the planning
for D-Day already underway, the house was chosen to be the location of the advance command post
of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force.
Next they toured various landing sites of the Normandy invasion. The landings targeted a 50-mile stretch of the Normandy coast which was divided into five sectors: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword Beaches.
A high point was the tour of St.-Mere-Eglise where paratroopers invaded and were easy targets for the Germans as they were illuminated by the fires from burning buildings in town. A wellknown incident involved paratrooper John Steele of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, whose parachute caught on the spire of the town church, and could only observe the fighting going on below. He hung there limply for two hours, pretending to be dead, before the Germans took him prisoner.
Next was Caen, France. Operation Mallard was the code name for an airborne
forces operation which was conducted by the British Army on 6 June 1944, as part of the Normandy
landings. The mission's objective was to airlift glider infantry of the 6th Air Landing Brigade and
divisional troops to reinforce the 6th Airborne division. The town now honors the glider invasion at
their museum.
Operation Market Garden (17–25 September 1944) was an unsuccessful Allied military
operation, fought in the Netherlands and Germany. It was a failed operation that tried to flank the
German Army and bring an early Allied victory. It is the subject of the movie “A Bridge too Far” and
has come to mean overreaching.
Charlie had a number of photos of various cemeteries, sites in and around the Battle of the
Bulge, and Dachau, the infamous Nazi concentration camp. He closed with a visit to Berchtesgaden, Hitler's Eagle's Nest in the Bavarian Alps.
Many thanks to Charlie for this interesting and informative talk.
Notes by Bill Elliott
Vol 92 No 2 - January 19, 2015
Goodwill Channels the Power of Education
Presented By: Joe White, Executive Director, The Excel Center
Joe White
Mr. White is a graduate of Earlham College and holds bachelors and masters degrees from that
institution.
The mission of Goodwill Industries is to help individuals and families to become economically self-
sufficient. That is to provide a hand up rather than a hand down. In Indiana there are 7000 ex-
offenders annually. 67% of these individuals are unemployed and 71% of employers are unlikely to
hire them. There are 700,000 Hoosiers without a high school diploma. The unemployment rate in this
group is 50% higher than those with a high school diploma. 70% of people with disabilities are
unemployed. The goal is to improve the income level and financial literacy of persons served by
Goodwill. There are Goodwill units throughout the United States with each state being divided into
regions.
Most people are familiar with the retail services of Goodwill but there are many other important
divisions including commercial services, charter schools and various other programs and initiatives. In
the retail division there are retail stores, outlets, vintage items, salvage/ recycle and Click Goodwill
similar to eBay. In the commercial services division there are janitorial services, packaging, product
refurbishing, and other activities. Clients work and get paid for their efforts. In addition to the retail
services there are many other programs including disability services, nurse family partnerships such
as child care instructions, as well as others.
In 2004 the Indianapolis Metropolitan High School was established. This is referred to as the Excel
Center. It was started with one and there are now nine charter schools which focus on stem subjects,
English and social studies. There are 700,000 high school dropouts in Indiana. 90% of jobs require at
least a high school diploma. These charter schools serve adults 18 and older who have dropped out
of high school for whatever reason. The average age is 26 years. 39% are African-American 37%
Caucasian and the rest Hispanic, Asian and others. Semesters are eight weeks in length with 5
offered per year. Multiple credit courses are offered as well as industry recognized certifications. The
state allocates $6600 per year per student which is less than many school districts allocate per
student in Indiana.
22% of graduates go on to college and 82% are still enrolled in the schools. They have obtained jobs
in manufacturing, medical services, hospitality and other trades. They earn an average of $9330 per
year more than an individual without a high school diploma.
Notes by Jerry Kurlander
Vol 92 No 3 - January 26, 2015
Collaborating with Community to Support Incredible Science Experiences
Presented By: Dr. Catherine Hagerman Pangan, Associate Professor, College of Education, Butler University
Dr Catherine Pangan
Dr. Pangan (Cpangan@butler.edu, 317-940-6215) is an Associate Professor in the College of Education at Butler University. She earned her doctorate at Teachers College, Columbia University, in Curriculum and Teaching. She attributes her love of science partially to her mother who arranged a loan of moon rocks (under armed guard). This inspired her and the rest of the story is still being written.
Dr. Pangan is dedicated to instilling exciting/enticing STEM teaching experiences and skills in her students at Butler. She believes passionately in the wonder and value of science (for its own merit AND also as a basis of modern society) and strives to instill this in her students, believing that science should be at the center, not the periphery of elementary/secondary education. She believes and strives to teach exciting, well researched kernels of science. These will nurture a desire for more, in both her Butler students, and, in the future, in their elementary school students. She hopes the desire nurtured for science will offset the "teach to the test" mentality that is currently popular.
Dr. Pangan's presentation described multiple initiatives involving her students with the community, focused on STEM teaching moments.
She started with a science demo. Pouring water into a container with a dry white powder generated a white (dry) fluffy substance. It was actually part of a magic trick to amaze and excite. Curiosity was raised.
The Challenge: transform students with a lack of confidence in science into well-educated STEM teacher candidates. The methodology: Blocked classes in a community environment; required science classes to establish knowledge; yearlong student teaching with assignments in upper/lower grades and urban/suburban schools; and four years of rigorous teacher training.
Interactive programs have been established between her Butler classes/students and IPS (Washington Township), the Sycamore School, the Children's Museum, the IMA, and the Indianapolis Zoo. Another program is starting with Shortridge Middle School.
At the Sycamore School they set up a program of CSI (Curious Science Investigators) to encourage the students to explore and learn. This is a student teaching assignment for her students. To judge the effectiveness of the student teaching, she uses the 5E model (Engage, Explore, Explain, Evaluate, and Elaborate).
A non-scientific measure is the PBA (Positive Bottoms Assessment). When the students are enthusiastically participating in the learning experience, she sees a lot of bottoms.
The Children's Museum serves as a resource to develop background knowledge on a variety of topics; one cited was the concept of density. CSI with museum "friends" is encouraged and thrives.
The IPS/Butler University LAB School has been established at IPS School 60 (34th and Meridian). NASA offered Dr. Pangan a class talk with the astronauts on the ISS (International Space Station). After a mini-lesson on ISS, students crafted questions which were sent to the astronauts. Astronaut David Wolf moderated with several students on stage. What do you do for an encore for 3rd graders?
Another program has been initiated with the IMA. It is called STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math). Students gained an appreciation for art in their everyday lives and had a creative experience with imagining clouds from an artist's perspective.
When the Orangutan Exhibit came to the Indianapolis Zoo, Dr. Pangan seized the opportunity to help start the Zoo's curriculum which naturally involved the study of the main subjects. This was another science learning experience in the community for her students.
Scientech thanks Dr. Pangan for a thoroughly enjoyable talk.
Notes by John Peer
Vol 92 No 4 - February 2, 2015
Energy and the Global Warming Delusion
Presented By: Dr. Jay Lehr, Science Director and Senior Fellow of the Heartland Institute
Dr. Jay Lehr
Dr. Jay Lehr, PhD, and Science Director for the Heartland Institute, received his Geological Engineering degree from Princeton and PhD in Groundwater Hydrology from U. Arizona. He spoke today about the issue of global warming, more recently referred to as climate change. Dr. Lehr maintains that the following points argue against the commonly held notion that mankind is a key contributor to global warming:
- Today’s earth temperatures are below earth’s average temperature during the last 5000 years.
It was 7°F warmer in the 13th century when Greenland was successful at farming.
- Temperature fluctuations during the last 300 years correlate highly with the sun’s changes in
activity level. NASA has determined that during the time the earth was warming in the past
century, other celestial bodies were also warming including Mars, Pluto, Jupiter, and the
largest moon of Neptune.
- 900,000 years of ice core temperature records and carbon dioxide content show that
increasing CO2 levels follow, rather than precede, increasing temperature changes with a lag
of 800 years. This was attributed to the known effect of temperature on the large reserve of
CO2 stored in the ocean as bicarbonate.
- Although currently increasing, CO2 levels still constitute a minor component of atmospheric air
(approx. 400 ppm) and man’s contribution to CO2 levels has been calculated to be only 3% of
that 400 ppm.
- Computer models for predicting future climate temperatures are flawed in that they are unable
to account for historical temperature changes, in particular the negligible changes in earth’s
temperature since 1998. Nevertheless, 107 flawed models are used to derive an accepted
“average model” for predicting future temperature changes.
- A recent study of 246 out of about 10,000 known glaciers indicated a balance between those
that are losing ice, gaining ice, and remaining in equilibrium.
- If greenhouse gases are responsible for increases in global temperature, then atmospheric
physics predicts that higher levels of the atmosphere would show greater warming than lower
levels. This was found not to be the case during the 1978 to 1998 period of 0.3°C warming.
When asked why 97% of climate researchers support the reality of climate change and mankind’s role in causing this change, Dr. Lehr refuted the survey study that reported this high degree of support. He also maintained that to understand why government and media outlets support climate change so strongly, one needs to follow and understand the money. He also cited politics and central government as underlying factors for the current situation. Dr. Lehr maintained that the current federal funding level of $5 billion is heavily skewed toward studies likely to conclude a role for mankind in global warming.
While not everyone agreed with Dr. Lehr, the club enjoyed the opportunity to hear the “other side of the story” and to engage in healthy debate on this topic.
Scientech thanks Dr. Lehr for an interesting and thought provoking talk.
Notes by Ray Kauffman
Vol 92 No 5 - February 9, 2015
Ending Hunger in Indy, a Systems Approach
Presented By: Dave Miner, Alliance to End Hunger, Bread for the World, Interfaith Hunger Initiative
Dave Miner
Dave received a BS in Chemistry in 1974 and a PhD in 1979 from Purdue University. At Eli
Lilly and Co., he held a series of management roles in Product Development, Regulatory Affairs,
Project Management and Quality Assurance. He retired in 2008 from Lilly’s animal health division,
Elanco.
Dave leads local activities of Bread for the World in Indiana and chaired the national Board of
Directors for six years. He also serves as president of a broad collaboration of the major food
assistance providers in the Indianapolis area called the Indy Hunger Network. They have a near term
goal of building a sustainable system to provide enough food for all who need it.
He serves on the boards of the Alliance to End Hunger, Bread for the World, Interfaith Hunger
Initiative, and Kids Against Hunger-Greenwood. The Indy Hunger Network, (IHN) is a collective
impact effort among the major food assistance providers in the local area. For five years they have
been utilizing a systems approach to developing a network that will provide healthy food for all who
need it. Try to imagine and comprehend the immense need for 85,500 children in Marion county
alone (18%) who are “food insecure.” They do not know when or where they will get their next meal.
These children are facing these real needs daily. A network system approach is helping to meet the
needs. There were about 150-200 separate food services organizations that needed better
connections to be able to have an efficient systems approach to coordinate and reinforce efforts to
schedule, educate and make nutritious food more effectively available, closer to when and where it is
needed.
Doubling food distribution services requires cooperative systems planning and involvement of
additional trained people, as well as dedication of physical local sites for the necessary additional
storage and distribution areas. One chart revealed the Food Sources, to aid understanding and
tracking of who is contributing what Percentages Food Sources:
SNAP (Food Stamps) - 75%
School Meals - 11%
WIC (Women, Infants, Children) - 5%
Gleaners - 4%
Pantries - 2%
Midwest Food Bank - 1%
USDA - 1%
Second Helpings, SVDP, CICOA, MOW - 1%
Need Help? Call 2-1-1. This telephone Help-Line provides comprehensive information and referrals services to Hoosiers in all 92 counties, 24/7. Please help spread the word about these vital services!
Notes by Dick Carter
Vol 92 No 6 - February 16, 2015
The McKenzie Center for Innovation & Technology
Presented By: Frank Svarczkopf, Principal, McKenzie Center
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Frank Svarczkopf
Frank Svarczkopf has been in Lawrence Township Schools for 31 years. He is the Director of
Career and Technical Education at the McKenzie Center for Innovation and Technology. He was
Athletic Director of Lawrence North H.S. during the 1990s and was the wrestling coach who won two
state championships. He was also elected to the Indiana Wrestling Hall of Fame. In addition, he was
State Career and Tech Ed Administrator of the Year in 2012 and 2014.
Dr. Bernard McKenzie (Supt. of Lawrence Township Schools) was instrumental in bringing
Vocational Education to the township. In 1977 Lawrence North was opened and the McKenzie Career
Center opened at the same time. In 1996 the Bernard K. McKenzie Career Center opened in its
current location and began Career and Vocational Education.
In 2010 the name was changed to the McKenzie Center for Innovation and Technology in an effort to dispel the negative stereotype of career education. This is not your father’s shop class anymore. There are 1,950 students pursuing national certification, dual credits, scholarships and internships. The Center is a respected division of Lawrence Township Schools with the attention and spotlight on College and Career Readiness nationwide. Students do not pay anything extra to attend McKenzie.
McKenzie Center has nearly 900 students in Engineering and Bio-Medical Sciences. This is
the largest Project Lead the Way program in the state of Indiana. Academic classes (English and
Math) at the Center are the same classes that are taught at Lawrence H.S. and Lawrence North H.S.
The Robotics team is starting its ninth year of competition. Competitions will be held at Purdue
University in West Lafayette, in Knoxville, TN and the Nationals will be held in St. Louis, MO.
One student was an IGEM 2013 winner with a project of a skin cream that can be used in early
detection of malignant melanoma. A second student was an IHIF 2014 contest winner with a project
that used a patient’s exhaled lung gases in the early detection of lung cancer. Five hundred fifty
students are enrolled in Bioscience and some go into the Nursing profession or allied sciences. Each
student receives his or her own mannequin skeleton.
Laser technology and 3-D printing are major devices used by students. The Indy Racing
League is a partner with students in auto design and mechanics. Students have been involved in
robotics research for 12 years. Competition is at the State, National and International levels. Sixty
teams will travel to Lawrence North H.S. on 28 February 2015 for a robotics competition.
Aerospace classes will be added to the course offerings. The Robotics program will be
expanded. Also, Digital Imaging Design will be added as a high tech business class for students
looking for a future in Journalism. Additional technology labs have been added to supplement the
present curriculum.
Students have partnerships with Raytheon and Rolls-Royce. The food preparation and food
service students are taught how to manage the costs that would be encountered in running a
restaurant. Of the nearly 5,000 students in Lawrence Township, 43% attend the McKenzie Center.
Mr. Svarczkopf showed a short video that highlighted the student experience at McKenzie.
Included in the film were many very positive comments from parents.
Notes by Bill Dick
Vol 92 No 7 - February 23, 2015
The Information Age: Big Data, Privacy, and the Internet of Things
Presented By: Franny Graede, MSIS, Scholarly Communication Librarian at Butler University
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Franny Graede
This presentation was mind expanding and at times a bit frightening. In the past when talking about “big data
files” we might have been thinking about something like a database of all corporate annual reports, all
associated K10 filings to the SEC, and any other associated financial data. It could have been the census data
for every man, woman and child in the US. These files do not hold a candle to today’s “Big Data” files.
Whenever someone makes a web search, buys something over the web, posts data on Facebook, etc. this
data is captured in data bases each and every time for anyone doing such a search!
In order to store all of this data, memory files are measured in yottabytes. 1 YB = 1024bytes = 1000000000000000000000000bytes = 1000000 Exabytes. The only time we saw numbers this big in engineering school usually had something to do with the size of the universe!
Why is all of this data being collected? The answer is to allow sophisticated marketing organizations to “mine” this data to collect information that will more effectively allow them to target their marketing to all of us as individuals. Special computer languages have been developed to plow through this data and uncover correlations. Selling data like this will probably be the largest source of revenue for many online companies in the future; Amazon is one for instance.
Mrs. Gaede gave an example of a woman whose pregnancy was known by marketers before the father even knew. The prospective mother’s purchasing pattern gave her away!
More and more consumer goods are “Bluetooth wired”; there is even a toothbrush with blue tooth capability. Household appliances are rapidly becoming communicators as well.
The future of our personal privacy is fraught with issues centered on this entire issue of data gathering. Our governments have seemed to be lagging behind the privacy needs of their public.
Mrs. Gaede teaches incoming students at Butler about web searching. She advises that we teach all web users the CRAP principles. Here is her clever method of remembering some basic points of guidance:
C currency – be sure your data is date fresh
R reliability – double check important data
A authority – be sure the author has authority
P point of view- be sure you work to understand any possible author bias.
Remember, just because you read something on the web does not insure it is accurate information. Important
matters should be double-checked.
This presentation was very well presented and very well received by the audience. There is clearly a lot of
interest in “Big Data” and its implications.
Post meeting communication from Mrs. Gaede - a copy of her email;
Institutional Repositories:
Digital Commons @ Butler University: http://digitalcommons.butler.edu/
See also:
Purdue ePubs: http://docs.lib.purdue.edu//
IU ScholarWORKS: https://scholarworks.iu.edu/
NDLScholarship (Notre Dame Law School): http://scholarship.law.nd.edu/
Looking at Data
US Government’s Open Data: http://www.data.gov/
State of Indiana’s Open Data: http://www.stats.indiana.edu/
Interesting Books
Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet: http://www.amazon.com/Tubes-A-Journey-CenterInternet/dp/0061994952
Dataclysm: Who We Are (When We Think No One’s Looking): http://www.amazon.com/Dataclysm-WhenThink-Ones-Looking/dp/0385347375
Notes by Dick Garrett
Trekking through the Grand Canyon
Presented By: Jim Dashiell, Orthopedic Surgeon, Club Member
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Jim Dashiell
The presentation for today was given by Dr. Jim Dashiell, aka Funnybone, about his recent hike and
camping adventure in the Grand Canyon. He was part of a Road Scholar group affiliated with
Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Az. He met 8 other hikers/campers in Flagstaff where the
details of their adventure were explained. The risks, including heat stroke, dehydration, falls, being
trampled by pack animals, sitting on a prickly pear, etc. were explained. The first day was spent
exploring the South Kaibab trail followed by lectures back at the hotel. Then they drove the 150 miles
to Havasupai Hilltop where the vehicle was parked before the descent of 3,000 feet to the Havasupai
Indians' community of Supai. This is the most remote community in the US, being at the end of a 68
mile long cul-de-sac.
The Havasupai are named the Indians of the blue-green waters as the water throughout the canyon is deeply colored by its calcium content. The return hike to the vehicle took about 6 hours and was essentially all up hill. The numerous visitors to Supai represented many nationalities. There are no banks in Supai. It is the only community in the US that has daily mail delivery via mule. The only 3 ways to get out of the canyon are by walking, riding a pack animal or helicopter.
Notes by Jim Dashiell
Smaller Devices, Bigger Libraries: The Counterintuitive Future of Public Libraries
Presented By: M. Jacqueline Nytes, Chief Executive Officer, Indianapolis Public Library assisted by Deb Champ
Jacqueline Nytes
Ms. Nytes left us with several memorable quotes, these are two of them:
"The future of libraries is not yet written."
"Those with access to information will progress and those without will stagnate."
Her presentation concentrated on the "virtual library", which is open 24/7. However, libraries continue
to serve as the "third place" after home and work or school for many Indianapolis residents. The IPL also
serves many small businesses.
The IPL Board just completed a strategic plan which set out how to better equip children, students and
the general population to thrive in the digital age. Physical access will increase with additional branches. The
branches remain critical to the many Marion County residents that don't have home access to the Internet.
Twenty percent of Marion County homes do not have access to the Internet. Ms. Nytes mentioned that more
people use IPL than attend Pacers and Colts games.
The online data base available to IPL cardholders is far more extensive than what has been traditionally
available in physical format at libraries. Almost 16 million items are circulated each year through IPL. Over 6%
of them are e-items. The trend toward use of e-devices is increasing and IPL is responding by providing classes
and instruction on how to use different devices and other digital technologies. E-books, music, and streaming
videos are all available with an IPL card. Ms. Nytes asked rhetorically, "Why pay Amazon when you can
borrow from IPL, since you've already paid for it with your property taxes?"
An IPL staffer is working full-time collecting materials from community organizations, such as
Scientech, to digitize the history of Indianapolis through the Community Digitization Project. [And we expect
our club historian Dr. Bill Dick to see that our newsletters dating back to 1921 are included and properly
digitized.]
Notes by Jeff Rashley
Tour of Heartland Growers
Coordinated By: Bill Dick
Heartland Growers is a full-service wholesale greenhouse located in Westfield, Indiana. It is among
the top 50 growers in the United States and the top grower in Indiana. Since 1984 it has been owned
and operated by the Gapinski Family. Its products are supplied to major stores in Indiana, Michigan
and Illinois including Lowes, Costco and Kroger’s. Wholesale plants and services are also supplied to
many local independent garden centers and landscapers.
The large 50 acre (including satellites) greenhouses employ anywhere from 80 to 170 individuals.
This depends on the stage of the growing cycle of the various plants and the season. About half of
the plants are started from seeds and the other half from cuttings from all over the world. These
number in the millions in this large facility greenhouse.
Heartland is one of the most modern capital-intensive greenhouses in Indiana. Heating is by natural
gas supplied by pipelines as well as methane gas from the nearby landfills. Sunlight penetrates the
double polyethylene gutter connected greenhouses. Some artificial light when necessary is also
available. When the plants reach the potted stage they are moved around the facility at the ceiling
level on overhead conveyors. These are the hanging baskets of flowering and foliage plants. Among
the plants grown are Geraniums, Lilies, Mums, Poinsettias and others.
The watering includes plant fertilizer and other nutrients plus pesticides when necessary. The
watering occurs through underground pipes as well as above ground sprays. We observed many
employees preparing the potted plants for delivery. The company has 40 cooled semi trailers for
timely delivery and during high season, such as before Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day, many
additional trucks are employed on a contract basis.
We were guided on the tour by two employees of long-standing as well as two recent horticultural
graduates of Purdue University. All were very knowledgeable about the process. The cleanliness of
the facility as well as the remarkable automation really needs to be seen to be appreciated.
Notes by Jerry Kurlander
Electricity and Water; At Times They Do Have To Mix
Presented By: Roderick Conwell, Manager of Regulatory Operations, Indianapolis Power & Light
Roderick Conwell
Our speaker today graduated with a BS from Purdue and an MBA from Butler. He is a long
time employee of Indianapolis Power and Light, holding many managerial positions including
Manager of Regulatory Operations.
As he notes in the title of the presentation, it is necessary at times for electricity and water to
mix. Recently there have been challenges from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), FERC
and NERC. All electrical utilities must comply with wastewater treatment standards at electric
generating plants. These new standards will force utilities to consider various options to comply.
This presentation centered on the approach which IPL has used to satisfy the environmental
compliance technology challenges and benefits.
IPL has 1400 employees, 528 square miles of service territory and is owned by AES
Corporation, headquartered in Arlington, VA. Indiana electrical generating facilities are in Petersburg
(coal and oil), Harding Street (coal, oil and gas), Eagle Valley (coal and oil), Georgetown Station (gas)
and increasing amounts of renewables (wind and solar). IPL is a vertically integrated utility, i.e. they
produce the electricity and bring it to the consumer.
The company faces many environmental regulations and despite being told that electricity and
water do not mix, they do so in several ways: Water is used to make steam for the generating plants;
water is used to run the turbines at the hydroelectric dams to generate power; water is used it to cool
the water in the nuclear plants’ reactor cores. IPL has no nuclear plans nor does it operate
hydroelectric facilities.
IPL is working to comply with all the regulations related to their actions coming from the
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) and many other regulatory organizations,
e.g. the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission and the Feds.
In August 2012 IDEM issued NPDES permit renewals to Harding Street and Petersburg plants.
These permits mandated new methods for treatment of wastewater which will require expensive
procedures. There are many other orders from these agencies which will add expenses. IPL must
comply by September 2017.
The speaker showed several techniques for handling these problems now. He discussed
alternative corrections to lessen emissions and ways of diminishing environmental damage as well as
other issues challenging IPL in years to come.
Notes by Jack Slichenmyer
An Iwo Jima Survivor
Presented By: Jim Baize, Club member, veteran of WWII
Jim Baize
Jim Baize has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University and a degree
in Nuclear Engineering from Purdue University. He worked for the Allison division of General Motors
until 1959, when he started his own engineering firm.
He was 15 years old in 1943 when he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He had a friend claim to be his
father and affirm that Jim was seventeen so he could enlist. Jim was sent to boot camp and then to
Marine Corp Base Camp Pendleton in California to learn how to operate landing craft for the Navy.
He became a coxswain, the driver of the landing craft.
He drove landing craft delivering Marines to the shores of Saipan, Tinian and Guam. He was
injured at Guam and returned to the fleet after his recovery. In February, 1945, he was sent with the
fleet to drive a landing craft in the invasion of Iwo Jima (Ed. note “Operation Detachment”).
Iwo Jima was in the path of U.S. bombers on bombing raids from the Mariana Islands to
Japan. There were Japanese fighter aircraft based on Iwo Jima, a possession of Japan, which would
intercept the bombers. If the U.S. could take Iwo Jima, the fighter aircraft could be based there and
escort the U.S. bombers to Japan. Disabled bombers could also land there.
In early February, 1945, Jim and the fleet arrived at Iwo Jima. The enemy was dug in with
1421 pillboxes connected by tunnels. The bombardment by aircraft and naval guns did not dislodge
them. There were 22,000 Japanese soldiers dug in so deep that the bombs and shells did not have a
great effect on them.
Jim drove his landing craft toward the beach, dodging disabled and smashed craft. Seventy
thousand U.S. troops made up the landing force. Over 8,000 were killed and over 6,000 wounded.
Twenty yards from the beach, Jim’s landing craft was destroyed by the shelling. Many other boats
were also hit. The other three crewmen with him died along with 38 Marines. Jim was pulled to shore
by a comrade and given morphine. His injured back and leg were supported by belts tied around him.
Other gear from deceased Marines was given to him and he learned to fight on the job like a Marine.
The Americans were easy targets, stuck on the beach with sand so loose and deep it was
impossible to dig foxholes. Their training and motivation carried the day. With flame throwers and
grenades they cleared pill box after pill box. Jim crawled up to the vent of a pillbox and threw in
grenades. The Marines then moved out of the beach and took more and more of the island.
Jim was wounded again when they were trying to take an airfield while aircraft dropped flares,
revealing their position. He woke up on a hospital ship where medical personnel saved thousands of
other Marines.
The island was eventually taken by the U.S. Of the 22,000 Japanese defenders, only 800
survived. One of the most famous photos of WWII was the raising of the large U.S. flag on
Mount Suribachi. It was actually the second U.S. flag raised there.
Jim showed an excellent color movie made from newsreel footage of the invasion. He also
showed a Navy movie about the Navy’s role in the invasion.
In 2012 Jim returned to Iwo Jima as one of the 12 U.S. survivors who could attend. The
reunion was sponsored by the Greatest Generation Foundation. Students from Ohio State University
were paired with the vets to learn the history of the Pacific Theater in WWII. Iwo Jima was returned to
Japan after the war.
No Japanese survivors of Iwo Jima were at the reunion to meet the U.S. survivors.
Jim gives talks about his experiences to let young people know what happened during the war.
Notes by Malcolm Mallette