Crewmen's
Biographies
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Dusty joined the Navy in November 1943, and after training was sent to the Boston Navy Yard where he was assigned to the USS LST 996. His entire WW2 service was spent aboard LST 996 which makes him an official Plankowner. After leaving the Navy in January 1946, Dusty returned home to Kingwood, Preston County, WV where he worked at the Borgman Coal mine. During this time he kept in touch with Catherine (Kay) Dineen, whom he had met while in Boston. Not much later, he went to Niagara Falls, NY and lived with a sister while saving money (working as a toll collector at the Rainbow Bridge) for his wedding. He married the gal he met while waiting for USS LST 996 to be completed at the Boston Naval Shipyard. Him & Catherine Dineen married on May 29th, 1948. Dusty was later hired by Hooker Chemical Company (now Occidental Petroleum) in Niagara Falls, NY. Despite working fulltime and having a family of three kids and one on the way, he still found time to build the family dream home which they raised their nine (yes 9!) children in. There were six girls and three boys, and a HUGE garden. He remained at Hooker Chemical Company until he retired in 1987. His position there was as a Stationery Engineer in their Power Plant. Dusty & Kay raised 9
children (below): Dusty continues to put in a large garden each year, he hunts in the fall with his brother Elmer, and sons. He goes fishing whenever he can. He also got his Barber's license using his GI Bill and still cuts hair on the side. He's an avid Sabres fan (Hockey) and was hoping to see them win the Stanley Cup this past season (1998). They were close!! Update: Sadly, on 17 April 2001, Dusty's wife of nearly 53 years passed away of congestive heart failure. My Dad lives alone, but has three children (and their families) that each live within 2-3 miles from him, and six others that visit from afar when they can, so he has company most of the time. He still has a garden, and in July 2003 he went to Jeffersonville, IN where he toured the USS LST 325. His first words to me (Sunset) were that they should have had the LST 996, it was always in tip top shape! To send a note to Dusty, click on his name above. |
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Ed & his wife Ruth married before he entered the Navy, on Oct 6, 1939. while LST 996 was in France, his only child, Thomas, was born. Ed was not with LST 996 during it's entire operation, he was transferred to other duty. Home for Ed and his family is Parkersburg, WV. His wife, Ruth, passed away in 1997, and unfortunately Ed Wasmer passed on 13 February 2002.
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 Ed
Wasmer, 1943 Ed has three Grandsons. He even attended Dusty & Kay's 50th Wedding Anniversary Party held May 23, 1998 in Niagara Falls, NY. In August 1998 he even took a trip to Alaska with his son.
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| Alfred A. Hunter Al has been most generous in contributing to the site here... more info on his family, what he did after the war and his interests is coming soon!!
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I was a
Plankowner on the LST 996. On
31 May 1948 Lorraine Eller and I were married. We have six
kids, five boys
and one girl. I worked in the construction trades for 45 years.
Lorraine and I are now
retired and living in Woodbury, Minnesota. |
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Special Note: Today (3/1/99) I located and spoke with Lt. Leach by phone! He is indeed still around, and will be providing information soon for his Bio and some family photos....so, stay tuned!! The Email address above does work, and his snail mail address is in the Address section. To send a note to the Skipper, click on his name above. |
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Richard "Jimmy" Henninger met Grace Pinner on Feb 5th, 1945 and were married on March 18th, 1945. Definitely a whirlwind courtship, but after 50 years, they are still together! To see more photos go to Classy Dudes area.... Update: Sadly, on 15 June 1999, Jimmy Henninger passed to the otherside. See Final Rollcall for more info. |
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The good news is that we are still finding other crewmates. In July 2003, Merle Hamre, who was the Stores Officer aboard LST 996 came forward after finding our Virtual Port. Here's what has been going on with him since he left the Navy..... He separated from the Navy in November 1945 at the Great Lakes. He then taught High School in Iowa for a year. Following that, he was appointed as a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agent with the in 1947. He served with them until his retirement in 1969. From there he moved to Michigan where he attended Indiana University and attained his Masters Degree. During this time, they raised four children, Eloise (who is now an RN), Anita (now a teacher), Paul (Chief Judge in Van Buren County) and Andrew (who is Adm of Middle School & HS Football Coach). Merle then taught in various Michigan Colleges until moving to Florida in 1984. He taught at Southern College in Orlando, FL and was Department Chairman until retirement in 1997. He then moved back to Paw Paw, MI where he currently resides with his wife Donna of 61 years! To send a note to Merle, click on his name above. To
see more photos go to Classy Dudes area....
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The email address above actually connects to Ralph Hatch, son of William Hatch who was aboard LST 996. Ralph's Dad told his son he named him after Ralph Hatch who was also part of the crew because he saved his life. Ralph has a lot of info of his Dad's even some diaries, so he will be sharing more of that info with us for the website. Here's a picture of William and his wife Irene. Ralph will send me more info for his Dad's Bio, so check back occasionally. To send a
note to his son Ralph, click on his name above. |
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The email address above actually connects to his son-in-law's (James) email at this time. Wayne has been in the ministry in Baptist churches for some 50 years. He is now the Associate Pastor of the Joshua Baptist Church in Joshua, TX. . Ralph will send me more info for his Dad's Bio, so check back occasionally. To send a
note to Wayne via his son-in-law, click on his name above. |
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If you would like to have your Biography included here, please Mail or Email your information, or that of your father if he does not have access to this medium.
