Thank You!
NST honors those who served
STORY AND PHOTOS
BY STEPHEN VRATTOS
Local and resident Veterans,
their friends and family members,
convened in Towers on
the Green Friday evening, November
10, for NST’s 15 annual Veteran’s Day
Memorial to honor the men and women
who served our country. Korean
War Veteran and the night’s emcee,
Fred Chernow, presided, opening
the evening with a reverential look
back at the distinguished holiday’s
origins before introducing Serviceman
Sebastian D’Agostino from the
Douglaston American Legion Post,
who led the assembled in reciting the
Pledge of Allegiance.
Remembrances from Korean War
Vets Irwin Robinson and Bud Bank
ensued, before Chernow introduced
the night’s featured speaker Joe
Reveman, former B17 radio operator
during World War II. Reveman’s
heroic service included 24 missions
and surviving two aircraft crashes,
during the second of which he
endured injuries in combat, earning
him the prestigious Purple Heart.
He shared an interview with his
granddaughter, speaking about his
military career at Bloomberg News,
where she works. After which, the
audience was treated to a video of
Reveman’s incredible missions,
created by his nephew, Brian Falk,
Korean War Veteran Fred Chernow
served as the night’s emcee
a few years ago. The film entitled,
“Riding the Airwaves: Stories of
a B17 Radio Operator,” has since
been recognized and accepted as a
historic document by the Library
of Congress as part of its Veterans’
History Project under the title, “The
Joe Reveman Collection.”
Speaker Arthur Dock served
as Yeoman Second Class in
charge of engineering on
CV-15, the USS Randolph, in the
Pacific Theater, during WWII.
He survived a torpedo hit and
Kamikaze strike, which killed 25
of his crew members and crippled
the ship, during his tenure. As
part of his duties, Dock was the
switchboard operator, answering
and directing incoming calls. To
help him through the tedium, he
took pen to paper and wrote poetry,
two of which he shared with
the gathering.
Though the horrors of his war
experiences may be more than fifty
years removed, they are far from
forgotten, so much so the usually
jovial and welcoming figure of
NST’s Arcade was somber during
his delivery and neglected to
explain the story behind his verse…
“I was so proud of him,” beloved
wife Shirley later remarked.
This following poem was
addressed to “Miss Shirley Shush
Dreznin” on September 24, 1944.
The two sweethearts married soon
after Arthur’s return from the war.
They celebrated their 70th anniversary
on May 31.
It was the first time
I’d ever known,
Rosh Hashanah
away from home,
Away from the things
I held so dear,
No, it was not
a happy New Year.
But being away
now is a short recline,
To ensure the future happiness
of yours and mine.
War is a thing,
just like the moon…
Goes in and comes out;
’twill go in soon.
So Dearest One, all I can say,
Is save your love,
I’ll be soon on my way.
Home to a life,
which we’ll start anew,
Home to a life,
which includes me and you.
—Arthur. A. Dock
POETRY MAN
Arthur Dock with his wife of
more than 70 years, Shirley
NST resident Malcolm Salit, who served in the 7th Division Infantry
as Company C Squad Leader and Staff Sgt. in Okinawa during WWII;
here he is with his wife of 54 years, Ana Maria
NST resident Sidney Silvers, who served as a Radar Man 3rd Class in
the U.S. Navy on the USS Heyliger for 4 years during WWII; here he is
with his daughter, Mara
Featured speaker Joe Reveman,
former World War II B17 radio
operator
6 NORTH SHORE TOWERS COURIER ¢ December 2017