Honoring Our Veterans: Will Rozum, U.S. Navy

In 1921, a new home was about $6,500, 30 rolls of toilet paper were $1, a snow shovel was 75 cents and a dining room table was $14.98.

A touring sedan was $1,250 and one gallon of gas for that car was one quarter.

Also in 1921, on Aug. 31, Frank and Julia Rozum became the parents of Willbert — Will — in Edwardsville. When not in school, Will and his buddies could be found playing with their 5-cent bag of flint marbles. Other times, they would be sleighing down hills, ice skating or Will would be picking blackberries with his dad. Will most remembers riding in his dad’s black, Model T Touring Sedan.

His father worked in coal mines and, as a blacksmith, he made his own tools. Will’s parents insisted he being mannerly, honest and ready to lend a helping hand to whomever might need it.

“My dad always said, ‘it’s easy to spot a child who’s been trained well by their parents,’” he said.

In grade school, Will received accolades from his teacher for his penmanship and nailing the proper way to execute the Palmer method of writing. His teacher exclaimed, “this is how it should be done.” Will graduated from Edwardsville High School in 1939 and his favorite subject was art and “Man in the Motorcar,” a course in car repair.

After graduating, Will worked briefly for Western Cartridge in Alton and Home Nursery in Edwardsville. The draft was looming, so Will joined the U.S. Navy, USN, when he was 19 years old, right before Pearl Harbor was bombed. He was in radar school in Norfolk and sleeping at the Cavalier Hotel that was swarming with giant rats.

After basic training in Great Lakes, Will went aboard the USS Alabama Battleship for the next three-plus years. Their travels took them more than 181,000 miles throughout the Pacific arena. Will’s job as a Fire Control Anti Aircraft Lookout was to serve as a watchman for Japanese planes on bombing raids.

Will recalled with great melancholy how they observed Kamikaze pilots as young as “13 or 14 years old waving to and smiling at us as we had to shoot them down. We could clearly see their faces.” Will noted this recurred approximately 20 to 30 times every day. During one particular day as an enemy plane was targeting their ship, the commanding officer, clearly verklempt, shouted, “what should we do?” Will announced it to be a Japanese Betty Bomber, a nickname coined by the United States troops, and told them it must be shot down.

Life on the USS Alabama

This battleship held about 3,500 servicemen and serving meals to all took five messes for each meal. Will remembers the two chow lines being one half block long each. Will also remembers the tragedy of the five Sullivan brothers from Waterloo, Iowa, all aboard the Juneau, which was torpedoed by the Japanese. That incident was partially responsible for the filming of “Saving Private Ryan” and the Sole Survivor ruling now implemented by the U.S. military.

Later, Will put in a request to become a Yeoman, an enlisted Naval service member who performs administrative and clerical work under their primary role and assignment. He got the job and worked alongside officers breaking codes. At that time, Will could type 60 words per minute. He was offered to join the Admiral’s staff, but declined.

In total, Will and the USS Alabama were in the rough Atlantic Ocean dodging German submarines for about one year and in the Pacific Ocean for about two years. He recalls a typhoon where the waves were 90 feet high resulting in the loss of three destroyers.

Reflecting on a port stop in Iceland where Will and his comrades went to a pastry shop, he recollects “the girls there weren’t very friendly.” When aboard ship and during leisure moments, many of them took advantage of the opportunity to swim, in spite of the danger of sharks. They would use the anchor’s chain to climb back on the ship.

Will meets Mary; couple remains active in their 90s

After his three-year plus tour of duty, Will returned stateside and began attending Brown’s Business School, and attended an English class; a young lass named Mary was in his class. One day at the lunch counter in a dime store, he spotted Mary having lunch with her girlfriend. Mary noticed him also, but knew it was considered inappropriate for a lady to initiate a conversation with the opposite sex.

Will got brave and invited her to go roller skating with him and later, to the Saturday night dance in Highland. They married April 22, 1960, 69 1/2 years ago and they moved to Highland. Mary was a stay-at-home mother for their four children, Carol, Lynn, Dan and Jane. Will worked for Standard Oil in Wood River before retiring after 33 years in 1981.

Will, now 98 years old, quips he robbed the cradle when he married Mary, who is eight years younger. But the two decided it would be in their best interest to keep active and in shape. They accomplished this by intensive bicycle riding for the past 25 years. Will is also a gifted wood worker and has hand-crafted much of their furniture.

The result? Will still mows his own yard and, believe it or not, still fits comfortably in his USN issued uniform complete with bell-bottom trousers and 13 buttons, which represent the original 13 colonies. The buttons are adorned with anchors. His said “my mind and memories are as sharp as a tack.”

The couple has seven grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren, and one on the way.