Country A Supplement to the Star Shopper
cres A Focusing on Today’s Rural Environment
Friday, November 16, 2018 • Edition 17 7
Raising the flag at Iwo Jima
PHOTO BY DIANE LEUKAM
Roger Tipka sits, cup of coffee in hand, Nov. 9 at Davis Motors in Litchfield, where it is his job to visit with customers five days a week. The 97-year-old WWII veteran was a radio operator on Iwo Jima during the famous battle in 1945.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
One of the most iconic photos from WWII was taken Feb. 23, 1945 by Joe Rosenthal of the Associated Press during the Battle of Iwo Jima. Roger Tipka of Litchfield took part in the historic battle. Later, the photo became the model for a national memorial in Arlington County, Va.
Tipka chronicles tour of military life By DIANE LEUKAM Staff Writer LITCHFIELD – Roger Tipka arrived at work at Davis Motors in Litchfield on a Friday morning, Nov. 9, like he always does. Walking down the hall, his feet shuffled, but he was fine, with a little help from the company’s owner, Chad Davis. Tipka’s chief function there is to visit with people, and often, those conversations turn to his time spent in the military. In a few days he would celebrate Veterans Day, something he has done now for nearly sevenand-a-half decades. At 97 years young, he is one of the remaining members of the WWII military. He says his knees are “shot,” but his mind is sharp and one must pay attention to keep up with him. His voice is quiet and he speaks quickly.
“This is America,” Tipka said. “If I don’t like the way Davis does things I can tell him.” Davis smiled, the camaraderie between the two obvious. “And you do, that’s for sure,” Davis said. “He’s a little spoiled.” Tipka bantered back. “That’s what they all say, I’m spoiled,” he said. “Don’t believe anything else anyone else tells you, it’s a lot of malarkey.” What is not malarkey is that Tipka was serving as a radio operator on Iwo Jima during the Battle of Iwo Jima, one of the bloodiest, lengthiest battles of WWII. The United States fought against Japan to capture the tiny strategic island about 650 miles southeast of Tokyo. Normally uninhabited and just under 10 square miles in size, the island was occupied by some 18,000 Japanese troops, heavily fortified and had three airstrips critical for
This month in the
U.S. firefighter planes. The battle raged from Feb. 19 through March 26, 1945. It was on Feb. 23, 1945, that a number of U.S. Marines were able to gain ground at the top of Mount Suribachi, and there they raised the American flag. A second, larger flag was then raised just a couple hours later, and captured on film by Joe Rosenthal of the Associated Press. It was an image that will forever remain as a victorious moment for the military. Tipka has strong feelings about that photo and how it has been represented. But, that comes later. Tipka prefers his story to be told in the proper order. He has earned that privilege. Tipka’s parents, Fred and Marie (Zemke) Tipka, were from Cosmos. Tipka was born in 1921 and had five brothers and two sisters. He attended school through the eighth grade. Like many in
COUNTRY
PHOTO BY DIANE LEUKAM
Roger Tipka shows a pewter mold of the island of Iwo Jima, where one of the bloodiest battles of WWII took place Feb. 19 through March 26, 1945.
his day, he needed to get a job to help support the family. He was about to meet some men who would change his path in life. “[There were] two fellows who owned an independent shop in Litchfield,” Tipka said. “Every day I learned something about cars. I put the tools back on the shelves. They gave me a few cents for that. They were nice to me, like old Davis here.
They said to me, you’re not going to quit school, you’re going to graduate from high school. I thought they were nuts.” Back in school, Tipka wondered what class he should take, and his decision would become a part of his military history. He took typing, something very un-
TIPKA continued on page 2
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