35 cents
VOL. 4/ISSUE 8
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2015
World War II airman joins broadcast of ‘Our Veteran Voice’ radio show Mary Kemper STAFF WRITER
mkemper@veteranvoiceweekly.com
On Dec. 14, the small Planet Vero Radio studio in Vero Beach was packed to its legal capacity — five people — one of whom was the star of the show about to be recorded. Ralph Nathan Oko, the host of the “Our Veterans Voice” show, was excited at the chance of interviewing World War II veteran William “Bill” Bryant, who served in the Army Air Corps and then the Air Force. “This is history, irreplaceable history,” he had said beforehand. Bryant’s son, William Bryant Jr., came along as well to help his Dad tell his story, and producer Cindy Schwarz handled the sound board, as well as contributing to the conversation. Bryant Sr., who speaks with a musical Virginia accent, had been interviewed by Oko before, and covered the years between the time he enlisted — just before Pearl Harbor — to 1943, in that broadcast. He was a radioman on a bomber crew, stationed for a while at Guadalcanal, in the Pacific. His skills would one day lead to the clandestine world of espionage. Before the broadcast, Bryant informed Veteran Voice that all five of his brothers served in combat as well — Wesley, Army infantry and Air Force; Russell, Navy, on a destroyer; Herbert “Lloyd,” an Army infantry lieutenant colonel; and Melvin, Bryant’s last surviving brother, who served in the Army Signal Corps. This time around, 1943 and thereafter were the main topic, after mikes were adjusted, earphones on and the signal to start was given. Acknowledging Bryant’s many missions he’d flown in the Pacific, Oko said, “What I’d like to do is move on more to the post-war period. “How long were you in the military after V-J Day, which was Aug. 15, 1945?” he asked.
Photo courtesy of William Bryant Jr. World War II and Army Air Corps (and subsequently Air Force) veteran William Bryant takes a break on the May Southeast Florida Honor Flight with his guardian, Justy Anuszewski. Both are Vero Beach residents. “I was out within 30 days,” Bryant said. “(My wife and) I went back to my parents’ farm in Virginia. We stayed there through the peanut crop. In the fall of 1945 we moved to Miami.” Oko had earlier joked that Bryant’s wife,
Betsy, was the “older woman” in the marriage, as her maiden name was Ross. “The woman who designed the flag,” he said. In Miami, Bryant “went into the grocery
See RADIO page 2
Sea Cadet battalion welcomes namesake’s son for second year Mary Kemper STAFF WRITER
mkemper@veteranvoiceweekly.com
The young men and women of the David McCampbell Battalion of the U.S. Navy Sea Cadet Corps, Melbourne, welcomed David
McCampbell Jr. Dec. 5 and his cousin, Bruce McCampbell, who gave a presentation on the history of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, World War II. Both men are Navy veterans themselves
See BATTALION page 3