Herbert H. Ruiz, Boatswain's Mate, born Oct. 10, 1923, Belle Alliance, LA. He joined the USN in 1943 and served in Far East Command under Bull Halsey and various island campaigns. He went aboard the USS West Virginia while it was under repairs in Bremerton, WA.  Memorable experiences include the bombardment of islands for invasions and when ship was hit by kamikaze plane.

He had three brothers: LT Horace Ruiz, SFC Warren Ruiz and SGT Roland Ruiz, serving during WWII in Europe, France Belgium and Africa-Italy. Fourth brother, Burleigh Ruiz, was called in service during the Korean Conflict in 1951.

He was discharged in early 1946 and worked for Texaco, Inc. for 36 years before his retirement in 1982. Herbert H. Ruiz died of lung cancer on Feb. 14, 1989. He loved his boatswain's mate whistle and kept in practice blowing it for years until his death. The whistle with the white platted rope was put with him in his coffin. Submitted by his brother Burleigh J. Ruiz.

Reprinted with permission from Turner Publishing