WWII Veterans Recognized as Elks Host D-Day Anniversary

By Chuck N. Baker
(Las Vegas) — It was 1942 and news reports quoted German Reich Marshal Hermann Goring degrading American soldiers as he spoke to a gathering of military officers and others. He said, “Their soldiers have other ambitions.” He added, “They’ll wobble on a dance floor for 72 hours with contorted limbs, rolling eyes, and a completely dopey look to be crowned marathon king.” He concluded, “Such things are not soldiering, and the U.S.A. will not impress us with bluff.”

In the end of course, it was Goring and his cohorts who faced the music, dancing in retreat as Germany lost WWII to the United States and Allied Expeditionary Forces.

The beginning of the end was D-Day, when America’s military commandeered the beaches at Normandy. On May 6, 2019, the 75th anniversary of that invasion was celebrated around the free world and in numerous community venues, including the main Elks Lodge facility on Charleston Blvd. It was there that hundreds of veterans and family members came to pay tribute to those who fought that battle so many years ago. And it was there that many of the fighters themselves were recognized as speaker after speaker, audience member after audience member, overwhelmed the veterans with words of praise and heartfelt thanks.

One of the more poignant speakers was Stephen “Pista” Nasser, who as a 13-year-old in Hungary, was sent with his family to the Auschwitz death camp. His brother Andris died in his arms, but not before Nasser promised that if he survived, he would tell the world the story of their ordeal.

He kept a secret diary while in the camp and years later used the notes and information to write “My Brother’s Voice,” a book of his true journey to freedom. Speaking at the Elks Lodge, he told the audience, “Finally I have arrived at home. You people make me feel at home.” He explained that his diary was “written under the noses of the guards,” and he said that for most Americans, Memorial Day is merely one day to relax. “But every morning I get up and thank the veterans. Every day is Memorial Day.”

Sebastien Thevenin is the French Honorary Consul for Southern Nevada. At the podium he said, “75 years ago the beaches at Normandy no longer were the symbol of a peaceful world. Americans and their Allies kept moving ahead, step by step, inch by inch. It was the defining moment of a whole generation.”

Retired Army General Ashley Hall delved into the history of D-Day, noting that General Dwight D. Eisenhower made absolutely certain that every detail was covered. “It took one full year to plan. It was the most complicated (action) in modern military history that we know of.” He said that on a visit overseas he and his wife visited the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, France.

When they walked into the cemetery that is the final resting place for soldiers killed on D-Day, he said he experienced an invisible force that momentarily engulfed him. He asked his wife, “Did you feel that?” She answered affirmatively and asked what it was. “It was the love,” he replied. He said they could feel the overwhelming emotional appreciation emanating from those in their final resting places. He told the Elks Club audience, some of whom were in tears, “If you ever want to feel the love — go there.”

How WWII Changed the World and Las Vegas

Clark County Museum Administrator Mark Hall-Patton provided insight into the places in Southern Nevada that were born out of WWII and still exist today. He noted in 1940 the population of Las Vegas was 16,500. By 1950, it was 55,000. Today, it’s up to 2.2 million and remnants of the 1940s that owe existence to WWII still survive.

What was an Army Air Corps training base became McCarran Field and later, McCarran International Airport. Today’s North Las Vegas Airport was initially built by Florence Murphy, the wife of then Highway Engineer Red Murphy. It seems Florence took her first airplane ride in the early 1940’s and was so enthralled she decided to build an airport!

The City of Henderson was established to house magnesium production plants for the military. It’s named after Senator Clarence Henderson, who famously never set foot in the town. And soldiers who attended a Gunnery School in Las Vegas were mesmerized when they saw the casino Illumination on world famous Fremont Street. According to Hall-Patton, the lights were so bright, many of the men thought the war was over and the city was celebrating. But when the war did end, many of them returned to live in Las Vegas and help make the city what it is today.

The Elks D-Day event was produced and coordinated by Bob Reed, who works with French authorities to honor American service people who helped to liberate Europe in WWII. Former Nevada Governor Richard Bryan took to the podium and read the names of D-Day veterans who were able to attend the Las Vegas event. As he recited the names and called them heroes, they stood to grateful applause. Some stood on their own, others required some assistance, but stand they did. They took part in the Normandy action 75 years ago when they were only 18 or 19 years old. Today they are in their 90’s. But as they rose to be recognized, they were all teenagers again, proud to recall the parts they played in saving the world from evil. The names of those WWII heroes are as follows:

SP5 Ronald Barnett, SFC Vernice Garr Jr., Pvt. Sam Edelstein, Cpl. Fred Casin, 2nd Lt. Dean Whitaker, CGMC Calvin Pascetta, Capt. Ben V. Fitz, PO 1st Class Leedell Neyland, Pfc Robert Stava, Sgt. Charles Dolehi, Sgt. Leo Geiger, Sgt. Roger Bain, BM2 Merrill Molsberry, Pfc Lawrence G. Mathr, Cpl. Alfred Marvin, Seaman 1st Class Berns, TSgt. Ken Hill, BM3 Art Roushklob, SSgt. Arvy Hambric, Sgt. Roger Bain and Capt. Herb Muskin.