After D-Day, Family Worried about Son Still Fighting in the Pacific

When Allied forces landed on the coast of France on June 6, 1944, it marked a turn in the battle against Germany in World War II. But for my family, it meant something much more. It meant that very soon one of my grandparents' sons would be coming home.

But it also meant my uncle, Lynn Zolman Bannister, would face increased danger while with the United States Navy in the Pacific theater.

My uncle was the second oldest child of Richard William and Ruby Lee Bannister. Although Lynn, who went by "Buddy" or "Bud," was serving in the Pacific theater on the USS San Juan, the ramifications of D-Day affected him and his crewmates aboard the ship. It affected the family back here in the States.

I grew up admiring Uncle Bud and his many colorful exploits. My father had been too young to serve during World War II, but he spoke with me often about Bud. Both Bud and his older brother, Bill, joined the Navy after the war was underway. Bill was injured during his basic training and was discharged from the service, losing an eye during a live-fire training exercise. But Bud went on, serving aboard the USS San Juan in the Pacific.

The D-Day invasion, for the military and their relatives back home, was not generally great news. It would help end the war, but it also filled many on the home front with fears their loved ones may not have survived the battle.

In 1995, I had the chance to interview my grandmother, Ruby Bannister, before her death in 1997 at 93. In the '40s, she worked at the Rice-Stix Dry Goods factory in Farmington, Mo., helping contribute to the war effort. She remembered the days after D-Day as a time filled with anxiety.

The Japanese feared of an invasion similar to D-Day in Europe. This fear exploded in the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944. Days after the D-Day invasion, Uncle Bud, aboard the USS San Juan, fought in that battle. Although the news her son was involved did not reach Grandma Ruby at the time, any news of hostilities in the Pacific theater filled her with fear. She confessed she constantly worried about her son.

"The war was a thing you couldn't help but think about," she told me in 1995. "My step-father (Harry Mitchell) had served during World War I, and then my son was there in the middle of the ocean. His letters always spoke about mundane things, but we had a secret code where he could tell me where he was. It didn't help me worry any less."

D-Day will always be remembered as the day the tide turned against Germany. But it did not alleviate the fears of those at home, who had no idea if their sons and husbands had survived. Many with children in the Pacific theater knew that although the Allied forces were making headway, the battle against the Japanese was still fierce.

On the anniversary of D-Day, I call for all Americans to remember the sacrifices of the soldiers and sailors that day. But I also ask that we acknowledge the sacrifices of those who still fought the good fight on the other side of the globe.