GB – XXV

The Staff NCO’s were greeting everyone, and taking a head count as they came through the door. Tom showed up alone. Everyone was allowed one free guest, but it was an all-hands party, and bringing Emie seemed like a bad idea. He looked around the club and saw Bill and Rocky sitting at a table near the stage.

Rocky waved and motioned him over, “Coming down to the end now, aren’t we?”

Tom nodded, “Yea, I hate it. Back to Japan. My last all-hands party. Where have you been? I don’t think anyone missed you, but I’ve been pretty scarce myself.”

Rocky smiled, “I glad we got back, too. We went to her village.”

“How far was that?”

“I don’t know, a long way. We went up the coast the first day, turned inland, and then finally, we walked. Huts, man, just some huts, and a trail that ran between them, going up the mountain. No road, no power, no real buildings at all.”

“Who is she? I didn’t think you had a steady.”

“It’s the balut girl, the one I was talking to last week. Her name is Lowena,” Rocky paused, weighing his words, “She’s special. She’s not working in a bar, she’s trying to make money for her family. They got nothing. She wants to help her sister go to school next year.”

“Squadron leaves in two days. She sells rotten eggs, so what are you going to do? Take her to the States?”

“I already did something. I had three hundred dollars, I turned it into Pisos and gave it to her.”

Bill laughed, nearly spraying beer, “You gave her four thousand Pisos?”

Rocky grinned, “Closer to five, I got a good rate. Anyway, it’s done. It’s all I could do. I can’t take her home, what would Nancy say?”

Tom asked, “What would she say if she found out you gave a Filipina girl all that money?”

Bill cocked an eyebrow, “And what would Kim think of Emie?”

“Good question. No good answer”, Tom turned back to Rocky, “Do you want to borrow some money? I think I can spare you a twenty.”

“Dollars or Pisos?”

“Dollars. I’ve been saving for a new camera lens, but it’s in Hiroshima, and I’ve spent half of what I had anyway.”

Waitresses circulated between the tables delivering San Miguel. The room was starting to fill up. The noise was starting to rise. Some of the Marines had arrived drunk, showing up in small groups to loud welcomes and cheers. At 2000 Top came out on the stage and held up his beer. Eventually everyone quieted enough for him to be heard.

“Welcome Marines and guests. This is the final gathering for the Warlords in the Philippines for this deployment. There is food in the back, all you can eat, and the officers are buying the beer”, Top paused to allow for the cheering to subside, “The stage show starts soon, so eat up, and get a good seat. Before anyone moves, I want to present the Commanding Officer, Colonel Thomas.”

The noise level dropped a notch as Lt. Col Thomas walked out and stood before them.

“I had a prepared speech, talking about what we accomplished, how many sorties and flight hours, but none of you want to hear that now. So I’ve decided to be brief.”

Colonel Thomas paused, searching for a starting point, “I started out as a recruit at Parris Island. I barely made it though. My first overseas trip was to Korea. I’ve had a heck of a run. From there to being commissioned, going to flight school, becoming a RIO. I’ve flown with and served with a lot of Marines. But command is what every officer dreams of, and I have had the privilege to command this Squadron for the last year and a half. It has been everything I hoped for and more. This has been the highlight of my career.”

Colonel Thomas paused as cheers rose up, “I have been selected for promotion and I will be reassigned when we return to the States. They will give me a desk to fly. I will go to meetings, move paper, and plan my retirement. But on my wall will be pictures of Phantoms, pictures of Korea, Japan, and the Philippines. Pictures of VMFA-451.”

The club shook with the pounding and applause. Col. Thomas stood on the stage, struggling for control of his emotions. Finally, as the noise dropped he shouted, “Semper Fidelis, Marines! Semper Fi.”

As the CO walked from the stage, Top signaled, and the band began playing. Girls came out on stage and the party began. Tom was fishing his camera out of his bag when he was stopped by a strong grip on his arm. He looked up to see Gunny Ceisak.

Gunny nodded across the room toward the officers, “I want you to go get a picture of the CO and the officers at his table. Then walk around once and take pictures of people eating. After that, I want you to put that camera away for the night. It doesn’t matter what else happens tonight, I don’t want to see a single flash, Harrelson. Understand?”