Western Michigan University - Brown and Gold Yearbook (Kalamazoo, MI)

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oil jbi JCU WaviM. 7alcoii You see me on the buses and in the shows with my peacoat and flat-hat. You don ' t know me per- sonally, but have you ever thought about me as I passed you on the street — about what I ' m like and of what I think? Chances are that, if you knew me, you wouldn ' t find me much different from the boy who delivered your paper before he grew from his high-school sweater to a blue or khaki jacket. My joys and sorrows, hopes and ambitions are pretty much the same as his. My business here is to learn and prepare — to become worthy of the stripes I hope some day to wear on my sleeve. But my work and studies aren ' t what I ' ll remember about this place in days to come. I ' ll remember Western and Kalamazoo for the part they played in my fun — my off-duty moments. I ' ll remember the people I met who became a part of my life — the guys I lived and studied with, the girls I met and dated and joked with, the teacher who helped me over study troubles, and the woman who gave me a lift down- town and told me about her son in the service. I ' ll remember the little unimportant things that might seem a little silly to you — Vandercook at night shining like a glittering Christmas tree . . . the laughter and confusion of the Soda Bar above the excited blare of the juke-box . . . the hurried last-minute check before quarters inspection . . . the long walk up the stairs to the hill after a strength test ... a coke in the campus store on a seething summer day . . . the low lights and bright music of the campus danc es . . . the shout of my name at mail call . . . the boisterous and crowded bus ride back to the barracks after night liberty . . . the extra warmth and softness my sack seemed to gain right after reveille . . . the elated prepara- tion for Saturday night liberty . . . the unhurried peace of a Sunday afternoon. These things, insignificant as they sound, ,i my life here a human vibrance that I ' ll reme ' i in the future, look back to with a warm fei ' i i. not untinged with regret that these thing: gone, now only a thing of the past — part oi cherished memories.

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FOR NAVY action, when the war w as moving closer and closer to Japan. They made cracks about the Battle of Kalamazoo and the men behind the Wacs and Waves. But they stuck it out and they realized that college and Navy ■were preparing them for their in- evitable roles in the thick of it. When some of the marines w ho lived last year in Spindler Hall w ere killed in action on Iw o Jima, w hen some of Vandercrooks ' former V-12 ' s were -wounded w hile ' with the Fleet — sailors and students, too, came to the sober kno wledge that college Navy units -were, after all, pretty important. We had fun w ith the Navy. Friendships and engagements and marriages, for that matter, resulted from the association of bluejackets and Western coeds. Many of the fellows have told us they think Western ' s tops and that they will come back to study here under the G.I. Bill of Rights. One of them, Tom Hill, has already returned and became this spring the Student Council ' s first male president since 1942. Best of luck, you fellows w ho pull out of Kalamazoo this June and October! And remem- ber that, though you were half Navy and half college w hile here. Western liked you and con- siders you Bronchoites w ith the best of ' em! jS s »i»— — -

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THE NAVY LOOKS AT WESTERN The following letter was received from a former marine trainee who was stationed at V( ' estern until last October when the marine unit left. He is now at Quantico, Va,, where he and a number of other Western marines are completing their officer ' s training. Marines Leave W. M. C. It always seemed odd — living in a barracks where the sign over the door said ' Hall for Women — but marching down Oakland drive that October day, it seemed as if we were leaving home. The fates of war had been good to us, and the other 500-odd marines who were fortunate enough to receive V-12 training at Western, but now those days were over and time had come for us to leave for new duty. Through the sixteen months during which we had been part of W.M.C. ' s war training program, we had come to enjoy our Kazoo duty . Though we griped — not seldom — about many things, we enjoyed ourselves much more than we ever dared let on. As we marched the seemingly short distance to the depot, we thought not so much about the tough road ahead of us, but let our minds linger on memories of our days in Kalamazoo. And as our train headed East we all stood at the windows with but one thought in mind — I wonder how long it will be before I ever see these sights again? Now, ask any marine about this and he ' ll laugh it off — saying it ' s a lot of a term not used for publication, but sit in on any of the sessions when two buddies of W.M.C. days meet and you ' ll find but one topic of conversation — The good old days in Kalamazoo. We like to feel that Western was as proud of our unit as we were to be members of it. Times have moved on since that October day. The route from Kalamazoo to Parris Island to Camp Lejeune to Quantico and then to combat duty has become well covered by the footsteps of Western ' s marines and to all those posts have gone the tales of V-12 days in Kalamazoo. They were days that won ' t aoon be forgotten. We made many friends among the students, faculty and townsfolk and via the mails we continue to keep these growing. We can still remember well ihe.wljple lay of the, cacapuS;.-T-,.£rO-m,the . ' llempo- rary Building to Walwood, and many is the time we stop to remember the times we climbed the hill between them. For now the marines have gone, and few will return as Western students in the better days ahead commonly referred to as postwar, but with each of Western ' s marines there ' ll forever be a lasting memory of days gone by when we lived in a Hall for Women . Pfc. Richard Hodgson, U.S.M.C. This story is the result of the combined journalistic efforts of Dick King, V-12 trainee ti ' ho served as bat- talion commander of the unit at Western last se mester, and Don Scott, the present commander. King is now at Midshipmen ' s school at Princeton university and Scott u ' ill leave Western this month for his naval officer ' s training. Fare-well to College Toys We who are leaving Western for duty, first at mid- shipmen ' s school, and then with the fighting fleets of the Navy, wish to extend a hearty, Well done! to the college faculty and student body, and to our officers and ship ' s company for their share in the task now completed. Here at Western we young men from every section of our great nation, united under the able direction of the faculty and staff to work diligently in preparation for the rigors of our duties as naval officers. It was not an easy task ; many of us long ago laid aside our books to serve with the Navy at far-flung outposts and with the sea-going fleets, while to others, the new mysteries of naval discipline and etiquette were indeed baffling. But with the cooperation of Western and the navy, our job has been a pleasant experience, long to be remembered. With the full facilities of Western ' s educational system at our disposal, we were able to combine the difficult acquisition of physics, navigation, and calculus, with the memorable pleasures of college life. Patience was the watchword of our instructors as we trainees struggled through many courses that were new and different, or that involved principle long ago for- gotten by us. Our libert) ' and recreation hours were filled with dances, plays, concerts, football, basketball, and base- ball games, and we entered whole-heartedly into these enjoyable social and athletic events. Our efforts, however, were not all directed toward mental proficiency and personal amusement. A very important part of our naval program was that of physical fitness. Able and strict instruction by the faculty and navy specialists in swimming, boxing, wrestling, cross- country, and the ever-present calisthenics, quickly tough- ened our bodies and sharpened our reflexes for the difficult duties ahead. Within our own trainee organization, we have worked hard to keep our barracks the clean, efficient, modern doiiiiit m itJii Llim ilitjy aie. Out wt;t;kly iill! and it;view! lent a martial appearance to the campus, and further steeped us in naval tradition. With the greatest part of our task yet to be we leave -with ronfidence, certain that W ' c trained in mind and body. The lessons here learned, the inspiration, leadership, and devotion to duty dis- played by faculty and staff alike, will be with us wher- ever we go. We have enjoyed our tour of duty at Western and know that those who follow will benefit, as have we, by the friendly spirit which is the keynote of the cooperative relationship between the Navy, the faculty and the students at Western. Apprentice Seamen Richard King and Donald Scott, U.S.N.