At the Memorial day Presentation at the Big Sandy High School Auditorium, the guest speaker was Durl J. Gibbs of the Lewistown area. He is a 95-year-old World War II veteran. Born in 1925 in Idaho, he enlisted in the U.S. Army upon graduation from high school. As a 19-year-old, he was assigned to the 381st Regiment, 96th Infantry Division of the U.S. 10th Army, a division known as the "Deadeyes." On Easter morning, April 1, 1945, his Regiment was part of the assault force against Imperial Japanese troops on the Pacific island of Okinawa.
Surviving the war, Gibbs returned home to marry, start a family, and become a rancher. He moved his family to Fergus County, Montana, in 1956. His first wife, Lucille, passed away in 1985. His oldest son Leland lives in Boise, Idaho, with his wife, Rhua. Second son Wes and his wife Linda live in Fort Benton. The family ranch is now operated by his daughter Clarajean and her husband, Cory Merrill.
Durl Gibbs has recently been the subject of a book, A Soldier's Journey, written by Wes Gibbs. It's a truly inspirational story about Durl Gibbs who is a World War II veteran who reunites with the family of a Japanese soldier who was killed in his fox hole. "The enemy soldier was killed at night as he crept to the foxhole occupied by my father; all three men had fought for their lives."
"At morning light, while quickly moving out of the foxhole, Dad picked up a small green pouch lying beside the dead Japanese soldier-perhaps an interesting souvenir, he thought-and he tucked it in his pack and moved on."
"Sixty-six years later on that same battlefield, Dad held a small bouquet of flowers which he planned to lay at the foot of the black, granite wall where this man's name was engraved."
The book talks about Durl Gibbs's journey to return the wallet, pictures, and a small unopened envelope to the family of the Japanese soldier killed by himself and his soldier companion, Sgt Dowell.
Wes Gibbs wrote, "Dad never talked about his war-time experiences very much. Most of the few stories he did share dealt with experiences he had with other U. S. soldiers or battlefield experiences in general. As a young boy, with a young boy's imagination of glory of war, I wanted to hear more about his experiences, like the hand-to-hand fight in his foxhole."
"I don't remember how old I was, but I still remember (now with great shame) asking Dad how many "Japs" he killed. The only answer he gave me was somewhat disappointing then, but patient nonetheless, with such an insensitive and personal question. It was something very close to these words: 'We were just trained to point in the direction of the enemy and pull the trigger. You didn't take time to aim. We were all just shooting as fast as we could.' The awful reality of it all never sunk into my youthful brain."
"Durl was nineteen years old at the time he enlisted in the U.S. Army a few months after high school graduation in 1944. "I had been a year behind in school, and I think I was kind of immature for my age...I weighed about 135 pounds. There were a lot of night marches in basic training. With an M-1 rifle and a full field pack, I'd be carrying about 60-70 pounds. And imagine me weighing 135! I had to pay attention to the little thing to make the grade. I grew up in a hurry."
It happened on the Big Apple. "The fight for the Big Apple seems to stand out in Dad's mind more than any other single engagement of the battle of Okinawa. Even more than the intense fight on Sawtooth Ridge. Also, the hand-to-hand fight with the Japanese soldier on the edge of the foxhole just a short time after the fight for the Big Apple hill."
The experience of returning the contents of the wallet was profound for Durl and for "Mrs. Kikuchi, who never had any part of her father." 'That wallet fulfilled that need,' Dad observed. 'That alone made me feel like God had a hand in it.'
There is so much in the book, such an incredible story about war and healing. "In the end, two soldiers--farm boys, really-who were sent off to war, came face-to-face with each other twice. Once in 1945 on a dark field in Okinawa, and again in 2011 in Morioka in Morioka, Japan in Noriko Kikuchi's small house."
It's a great book, an honor to have him in Big Sandy for the Memorial Day guest speaker.
