ALAMOSA — Over the past decade, the United States has lost countless members of the “Greatest Generation,” those men who grew up during the Great Depression and then, often still in their teenage years, served their country in World War II.  

Too often, these Veterans are not recognized for their enormous sacrifice and pass away, taking the stories of their lives with them. 

Thanks to the efforts of former Alamosa City Councilman and president of the American Legion Charlie Griego, that is not the case this year. 

This year, 96-year-old Calvin Berry, who lied about his age so that he could enlist in the military during World War II, will be honored for service to his country when he acts as the Grand Marshal of the Veteran’s Day Parade in Alamosa.  

Berry, who is a resident of Hooper, recently met the Valley Courier at the American Legion where he shared recollections of his life.  

“I was born in Ardmore, Oklahoma, Choctaw Nation,” he begins. “When I was a little kid, I didn’t make much money, so I left with my uncle and we went to California, where we were picking grapes and peaches and cotton. I got a dollar a day. That’s when I lost all sense of my culture and had nobody to keep my language up. I’ve forgotten all of that except for a few words. 

“We lived in Firebaugh, California in a workers’ camp. We were just a bunch of poor people, trying to make a living and working pretty hard. We slept on bunks and ate all together and then got on the wagon and they took us out to pick cotton or berries or whatever. It was just like anybody else, I guess. It was the Grapes of Wrath days.”  

It took a while, but Berry began to want something else for his life. 

“After I did all that farm work, I decided I wanted to go in the service. So, I made a big story and told them I was eighteen. They believed me and I joined the Coast Guard. I was stationed on the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Storis,” he says. “I was a steward’s mate first class. My ship’s commander was Lieutenant Commander Robin Hood. That was his name. Commander Robin Hood.” He laughs just a little. 

The Storis had quite a stellar history. Often called “the Galloping Ghost of the Alaska Coast”, the Storis was a light icebreaker and was “witness to much of World War II.” 

When asked why he chose the Coast Guard, Berry has to think for a while. Two of his uncles were deputies, he said, and that always interested him. He picked the Coast Guard because it’s a kind of law enforcement. 

After enlisting, Berry was sent to Boston, Mass., for boot camp. When asked if he has any memories of being a kid not even 18 years old who finds himself in boot camp for the United States Coast Guard, Berry gets quiet for a moment.  

“After a couple of weeks, we went out on a PT boat, and we were told to turn back a boat full of some foreigners. I guess whenever we turned them back, some of them jumped off the boat and tried to swim and…they all drowned.  

“It was a burden on me to see. People hollering for help, down in the water and there was nothing I could do for them. It’s become a bit of a burden to carry.” 

While he was in boot camp, Berry had another experience that he still carries with him, as well. 

“We was in the galley doing dishes and I was next to the boiler and the heat hit me here.” He touches the left-hand side of his face. “We got a break and I went outside on the ship by the rail where the cold air hit it, and it froze. I couldn’t move it.” Again, he gestures to the entire left-hand side of his face.  

“So, they sent me to the Marine Hospital in New York and treated me with heat and I got most of the feeling back, but this one side of my face still feels numb. 

“When I got out of the hospital, they said I could go home for a week. So, I went home to Oklahoma and when I got back they said my ship had just left, so they put me on a PBY. That’s an aircraft that can land on water.”  He laughs a little. “I looked out that window and I looked down at that water and…” He laughs again.  

Berry said he was on the Storis for about a week when they were sent to arrest Russians who were on an iceberg. 

“We hit an iceberg while we was out there and damaged the rudder, so we had to return to port,” he said. 

Berry was in the Coast Guard at Pearl Harbor when it was attacked. When asked what he remembers of that day, he said, “We were shooting at aircraft that was overhead, and I had to load the shells in the gun. And it went boom real loud and I lost my hearing. Then I had to load them again and that time it ruptured my ear drum.” 

He was in the Coast Guard from 1941 to 1943 and, when Lt. Cdr. Robin Hood told him he could re-enlist in the Navy he thought about it but decided against it. 

“It was good to be back on land,” he said. 

After being discharged, Berry returned to picking cotton, but he never lost his interest in law enforcement. When he came to the San Luis Valley, he “became acquainted with” several deputies.  

“They would call me when they needed to find someone. I would use my eagle feathers, and they would just point me in the right direction. We found several people who had drowned in the water that way.” 

Looking back on his life and the war, Berry recalls those who have passed away. He speaks of his two cousins who died in the war. He speaks of others – friends and family – he has lost over the years. 

“There are so many others who have died, but I’m still here. I’m still here,” he said. 

The Alamosa Veterans Day Parade is scheduled in downtown Alamosa at 11 a.m., on Monday, Nov. 11.