William Peter Chaldekas
| "I'm Greek and I'm stubborn and I'll tackle anything." |
Name: William Peter Chaldekas Date of Birth: 11/17/14 Branch of Service: Army Dates of Service: February 1941 to July 1945 Location of Military Service: South Pacific |
| Mr. Chaldekas served in the 37th Division of Ohio in
the United States Army. He was drafted in 1941 and was sent to camp
Shelby, Mississippi for basic training. He had graduated from
college and was a diesel engineer at the time. He was assigned to
serve in the Pacific and boarded the ship "Texas". While going
overseas, the ship had mechanical problems and was disabled at sea.
The convoy protecting the ship had to go on so it was left with 4 PT Boats
to protect it from the Japanese. It took 28 days to reach their
destination. They landed at Tonga Dabu Island near Fiji. He
was in the quartermaster group and since he was a diesel engineer, he was
made responsible for setting up the refrigeration units for the
distribution of food to the troops. He was also sent to the Near
Hebrides Islands as a temporary replacement. There, he serviced
30,000 to 60,000 troops twice a week. He had at his disposal
1million cubic feet of refrigeration and 4 staple warehouses. He had
7 non commissioned under him and 50 loaders and unloaders. One of
the highlights of his time in the military was when he volunteered to go
on a bombing mission as a 20 M.M. Gunner. He also went to Bougainville to set up
operations there. He was wounded with shrapnel in his shoulder while
manning a machine gun for 12 hours to hold off the Japanese there. |
|
|
