9 LIVES ROGERS

INTRODUCTION General George Patton said, “The Soldier is the army. No army is better than its soldiers. The Soldier is also a citizen. In fact, the highest obligation and privilege of citizenship is that of bearing arms for one’s country.” This is the story of one soldier that made up that Army - Don Rogers’ unique story told in his own words. It is a collection of all the letters written to his wife (which you can read just as they were written), personal interviews I had with my dad, and from the research of his service records. This is also a love story. As one reads the letters dad wrote home to his wife and knowing that my mom wrote daily to my dad (these letters we unfortunately do not have) we can see what an impact the letters had in supporting and sustaining them throughout the war. As General Jimmy Doolittle spoke at the Hollywood Bowl in 1945, he said it was his wife’s unwavering support and encouragement that sustained him through the war years. It also shows how my mom’s sacrifice and loyalty kept dad going for 4 years. This is also a story of faith. Faith that God would protect her husband, faith that God had a plan, a purpose, and a destiny for them. This is a story not just about my mother and father, but how couples made it through those terrible years being separated from one another with sacrifices, perseverance, discipline and the courage to get through the war years. Dad was a member of what I call “THE GENERATION OF HEROS”, from whom we inherited this great country. Those who lived through some of the world’s darkest years, such as the Great Depression, WWII, the Korean War, the Cold War, the 60’s assassinations, The Vietnam War, the civil rights turmoil, 911, and more. All of which seemed to almost destroy us as a nation; but they kept America together and strong. “THE GENERATION OF HEROS” stood up against tyranny, fighting to keep America free and fulfill the promises of our constitution, such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that John Kennedy had introduced. “THE GENERATION OF HEROS” fought to preserve freedoms here and across the world, being good stewards of America and of what the Founding Fathers left for them. A constitution that established a very special country with high ideals and principles. A nation that values life, declaring that “all men are created equal and have the right to life, liberty, justice, and the pursuit of happiness.” A nation peopled by the world. A generation that strove to fulfill those high ideals of our constitution and create a more perfect union. Even though America has a history of the good, the bad and the ugly, they endeavored to correct mistakes of the nation’s past, knowing that “The past is not the past until it no longer controls the present”. They sought to make this special nation better than they inherited it. America is unlike any other country in the world, for it is not known for one nationality such as French, English, African or Asian. But rather a melting pot, a casserole, a mixture of the very best of flavors of the nations of the world. America has become a unique nation like no other. As a Constitutional Republic with a constitution that is 200 years old, it still stands as a leader, and a light of freedom to all peoples and nations. The United States of America is the peoples’ nation. This is the story of one individual, of the millions of individuals, who joined an army of individuals, who collectively defeated evil and tyranny in their time. They sacrificed their lives in big ways and small ways, in known ways and unknown ways. Their stories need to be told before they are lost in the dust of our past. We need to keep our collective memories alive, never forgetting who we are and from where we came. LAYING THE FOUNDATION World War II was America’s biggest challenge since the Civil War. It called for everyone to commit themselves to contribute to the war effort. The world was to fight for freedom, justice, respect for humanity, to fight against land grabbing, totalitarianism, slavery of peoples and bondage, to fight on two fronts against ruthless enemies that sought to dominate the world. This was a WORLD AT WAR with more than 50 nations becoming involved in the fighting, with over 100 million soldiers involved. Some 26 countries formed the Allies, led by the three great powers of Great Britain, the United States, and the Soviet Union. The Axis of evil consisted of 9 countries led by Germany, Italy, and Japan. The Axis countries began grabbing land, nations, and peoples by military means as early as 1933, enslaving those countries they conquered, all of which led up to World War II. It remains as the conflict of conflicts which drastically changed the world’s Paradigm. It is estimated that 60 to 85 million people lost their lives between 1939 and 1945. There were 21 -25 million military deaths, and 50-60 million civilian deaths, along with 5 million prisoners of war. Russia alone lost 22 to 27 million people, China lost near 20 million, Germany lost 8 million, and Japan lost 2 to 3 million. The United States of America is estimated to have lost 407,000 military personnel and 12,000 civilians. It is estimated that 6 million Jews were killed during the Holocaust. Just think of all those lives lost to humanity. We will never know what these faceless, nameless individuals could have contributed to the world had they lived. All this destruction came about by only a few leaders such as Adolph Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Hirohito, along with a circle of loyal followers, cheering crowds swept up in their fanatism. There were those who, out of fear and silence, did nothing to oppose evil when it first started.