2
2
0
3,000 Marines gave their lives to secure the island just following D-Day invasion in Europe. My wife says Saipan is absolutely gorgeous. She has burned thru 4 passports just going there from Japan. Has anyone ever been there? More importanly, does anyone have family who served during the campaign in WWII?
Edited >1 y ago
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 16
4
4
0
SFC Mark Merino, I've never been to Saipan. However, my father, LTJG Jack Curlee, served aboard USS LST 78 and made more than one landing on Saipan, 1945 timeframe. The photo of the ship is when beached on Okinawa.
1LT L S Capt (Join to see) LTC Stephen F.
More on my father, CPL Doug Hill.
1LT L S Capt (Join to see) LTC Stephen F.
More on my father, CPL Doug Hill.
(4)
(0)
LTC Stephen C.
Totally agree, CPL Doug Hill. My father put himself through college by stoking open hearth furnaces in a steel mill. However, he was just one of many of the hard core you speak of that just got on with what had to be done.
(0)
(0)
2
2
0
My Father was with the 4th Division Marines that saw action on four of the following Islands- Saipan, Tinian, Roi Namur, and Iwo Jima. The Movie Wind-Talkers was supposed to be about the Battle of Saipan.
(2)
(0)
SFC Mark Merino
A thunderous round of applause and the loudest "Greatest Generation RESPECT!" I can shout! That is amazing. Did you ever coax any stories out f him?
(0)
(0)
1stSgt Ron Gallegos
After following in his footsteps, NO. He didn't want to traumatize me whenever my time would come to face combat; However, my siblings got ears full just recently. We have since compared notes. He says your War's don't compare and I do not disagree.
(1)
(0)
2
2
0
I had no idea that Saipan was home to a company from the famous 442nd Regimental Combat Team from WWII. Japanese Americans, mostly from internment camps located throughout the US, volunteered to fight for the very country that locked them up as "enemies to the security of the United States." Below are some of their stats that show they were one of the fiercest fighting Infantry units of WWII. Forever immortalized by the classic movie "Go For Broke" starring Van Johnson. RallyPoint members who are EOA/EOR's should familiarize themselves with this unit. Greatest Generation RESPECT!!!
http://www.the442.org/442ndfacts.html
http://www.the442.org/442ndfacts.html
442nd Regimental Combat Team Facts
442nd RCT facts-activation, campaigns, casualties
(2)
(0)
2
2
0
1
1
0
I have, though my experince is probably not relevant to your needs. I was about 6 years old. For a frame of reference it was 1959. My father, a first class SK, was stationed at the communications station on the island. My family was there for a short time. I remember the beaches, jungles and some of the left overs from the war. Off the one beach we swam at there was the remains of a tank. Years later as a sailor on liberty in Hawaii I walked past a book store and saw a book about Saipan, with that scene captured on the cover.
I remember we leaved in Quonset huts. And that a neighbor, working in her garden, dug up some unexploded ordance which caused a panic.
For a kid it was a beautiful place.
As a sailor I've been to Gaum, refueling stop for ships transiting the Pacific for a West Pac cruise.
I remember we leaved in Quonset huts. And that a neighbor, working in her garden, dug up some unexploded ordance which caused a panic.
For a kid it was a beautiful place.
As a sailor I've been to Gaum, refueling stop for ships transiting the Pacific for a West Pac cruise.
(1)
(0)
SFC Mark Merino
Digging up UXO makes for an exciting morning. The entire island is a graveyard and they are recovering remains with almost every shovel that enters the ground. The locals are extremely respectful and eventually they get repatriated to the country of origin. I applied for a job to be liason with the recovery team based in Hawaii but I'm very grateful to say that they found an anthropologist for the position.
(0)
(0)
1
1
0
I agree it's beautiful. I was there a couple times along with Tinian. It was funny in the early 90's on Tinian watching the wide bodies going in and out of Saipan for the golf and casinos. It was cheaper for a Japanese citizen to fly there, play a few rounds and fly home than to pay greens fees back home. Tinian was the milk and eggs center of the Marianas and wanted a piece of the Saipan action. They put in some stuff without the big airport can't compete.
(1)
(0)
SFC Mark Merino
I saw ads for their casinos. My wife is Japanese and has been there 15 times and said the same thing. It is very cheap to fly those routes. They often vacation at Guam/Saipan/Tinian as a weekend get away. The skinkansen (trains) are almost putting the air industry out of business so the flights are very cheap.
(0)
(0)
1
1
0
Can't say that I have, but I was fortunate enough to spend a week on Midway Island. A lot of history there!
(1)
(0)
Hi SFC Mark Merino -- we currently have 6 RallyPoint members located right now in Sapian. Here is the link to connect with them. I will also tag them here for you.
https://www.rallypoint.com/locations/saipan-northern-mariana-islands/current
2LT (Join to see) SSG (Join to see) SGT Robert A Guerrero SGT Frank Cepeda Sgt Raymond Sablan LCpl Pasqual DeleonGuerrero
https://www.rallypoint.com/locations/saipan-northern-mariana-islands/current
2LT (Join to see) SSG (Join to see) SGT Robert A Guerrero SGT Frank Cepeda Sgt Raymond Sablan LCpl Pasqual DeleonGuerrero
(1)
(0)
(1)
(0)
SFC Mark Merino
You are correct SGM Steve Wettstein. They are broken down by companies with one in Saipan as well. I'm very grateful they kept that unit alive.
(1)
(0)
SGM Steve Wettstein
SFC Mark Merino I worked with 100-442 in OIF III in SalahDin Province. It is great that they kept part of the old 442d RCT on the rolls.
(0)
(0)
1
1
0
Been there when I was in Guam. Small but beautiful island. However, not much to do there.
(1)
(0)
SFC Mark Merino
I hear they are having a real battle with some brown tree snake that has infested the island.
(0)
(0)
LCDR Doug Nordman
Mark, moving to Guam is like moving to a small Midwestern town where everybody knows your business, and after 30 years you're still referred to as "that new guy". That's not good or bad, it's just one reality of small-town life. The advantages outweigh the drawbacks.
Moving to Saipan is like moving to a hunting cabin in the hills so that you don't have to be bothered by all the people in that small Midwestern town. Again, the attractions still outweigh the disadvantages.
However Saipan is developing a visitor industry with Russians and Japanese (and now perhaps Chinese). Resorts are springing up along with the usual things to see & do on land and sea. In 5-10 years after you move there you'll probably find yourself grumbling about all the crowds clogging the streets, ruining the good dive sites, and driving up the prices. When they bring in a Costco or a Home Depot then you'll know it's time to move... to Tinian.
Two other considerations for the Marianas: earthquakes and typhoons. The earthquakes are usually minor (more 4-6 than >7) but the typhoons are serious threats. (There's a very good reason that much of Guam's base housing is built out of concrete block and looks like pillboxes.) When (not if) the 150-knot typhoon hits you will need to survive at least two weeks without electricity, running water, or civil order.
I highly doubt that Saipan has the civil defense or disaster-response infrastructure to handle a bunch of frustrated visitors in dark hotels with no food or water and toilets that won't flush. (Heck, Hawaii barely has that infrastructure. I think.) The military will rush into Guam for 8th AF and SUBRON15, but Saipan will not exactly be at the top of the priority list.
Guam & Saipan are still great places to live, but you'll want to add MREs and water barrels to your plans. A heavy-duty typhoon shelter. A robust first-aid kit. Fishing poles. Perhaps a generator (if you can get gas!) or a photovoltaic array. A solar oven. A way to collect/sanitize rainwater. Maybe shotguns too. Partyin' like it's 1899.
Here's a thought which keeps me anchored to Oahu instead of upcountry Maui or Molokai: healthcare. If I develop a chronic condition needing routine monitoring and perhaps even prescription medication-- we're talking just a little high blood pressure, not even diabetes or dementia-- then I'd want to be on an island with more than just a country doctor or two. Telemedicine is making great improvements on that, but I bet the Saipan bandwidth depends more on satellite than fiber-optic cable. Again the advantages of living there outweigh these issues, but you might need a Plan B for your 80s.
The brown tree snake is eating the eggs of the native birds (throughout the Marianas) and killing the island's species diversity. There's apparently a pretty significant domino effect to losing the birds (the birds spread seeds, pollinate plants, and commit other ecological acts) but the brown tree snake doesn't seem to have a predator to keep it in check. The biologists are working on it but the solution has to avoid unintended consequences.
Hawaii is terrified of the brown tree snake, which is one of the reasons for the agricultural inspection program. Once or twice a year we find a brown tree snake on the Honolulu runways from the wheel wells of the Guam flights. Usually they're dead... as far as we know, anyway.
Moving to Saipan is like moving to a hunting cabin in the hills so that you don't have to be bothered by all the people in that small Midwestern town. Again, the attractions still outweigh the disadvantages.
However Saipan is developing a visitor industry with Russians and Japanese (and now perhaps Chinese). Resorts are springing up along with the usual things to see & do on land and sea. In 5-10 years after you move there you'll probably find yourself grumbling about all the crowds clogging the streets, ruining the good dive sites, and driving up the prices. When they bring in a Costco or a Home Depot then you'll know it's time to move... to Tinian.
Two other considerations for the Marianas: earthquakes and typhoons. The earthquakes are usually minor (more 4-6 than >7) but the typhoons are serious threats. (There's a very good reason that much of Guam's base housing is built out of concrete block and looks like pillboxes.) When (not if) the 150-knot typhoon hits you will need to survive at least two weeks without electricity, running water, or civil order.
I highly doubt that Saipan has the civil defense or disaster-response infrastructure to handle a bunch of frustrated visitors in dark hotels with no food or water and toilets that won't flush. (Heck, Hawaii barely has that infrastructure. I think.) The military will rush into Guam for 8th AF and SUBRON15, but Saipan will not exactly be at the top of the priority list.
Guam & Saipan are still great places to live, but you'll want to add MREs and water barrels to your plans. A heavy-duty typhoon shelter. A robust first-aid kit. Fishing poles. Perhaps a generator (if you can get gas!) or a photovoltaic array. A solar oven. A way to collect/sanitize rainwater. Maybe shotguns too. Partyin' like it's 1899.
Here's a thought which keeps me anchored to Oahu instead of upcountry Maui or Molokai: healthcare. If I develop a chronic condition needing routine monitoring and perhaps even prescription medication-- we're talking just a little high blood pressure, not even diabetes or dementia-- then I'd want to be on an island with more than just a country doctor or two. Telemedicine is making great improvements on that, but I bet the Saipan bandwidth depends more on satellite than fiber-optic cable. Again the advantages of living there outweigh these issues, but you might need a Plan B for your 80s.
The brown tree snake is eating the eggs of the native birds (throughout the Marianas) and killing the island's species diversity. There's apparently a pretty significant domino effect to losing the birds (the birds spread seeds, pollinate plants, and commit other ecological acts) but the brown tree snake doesn't seem to have a predator to keep it in check. The biologists are working on it but the solution has to avoid unintended consequences.
Hawaii is terrified of the brown tree snake, which is one of the reasons for the agricultural inspection program. Once or twice a year we find a brown tree snake on the Honolulu runways from the wheel wells of the Guam flights. Usually they're dead... as far as we know, anyway.
(1)
(0)
SFC Mark Merino
Best intel brief I ever got on RallyPoint! Thanks, brother. Hitomi really wants to move to Hawaii but no job offers yet and weconsidered one of the smaller islands to save money. Can you point us in a military retiree yet rent managable/safe place?
(0)
(0)
SGT (Join to see)
I personally think guam and Saipan is good for vacation and not to live in. Lived there for 17 years.
(0)
(0)
1
1
0
SFC Mark MerinoNope, but with the transfer I am taking, I will be stationed in N/Cal, covering investigations in N/Cal, Nevada, Hawaii, Guam and Saipan, so I will be going there for work. Very excited to see that part of the world and it's history.
(1)
(0)
SFC Mark Merino
I bet! As a WWII history nerd I need to brush up on my Pacific campaign stuff. I keep finding great pictures and Hitomi has been there almost 50 times.
(0)
(0)
Read This Next
Continue with Facebook 
Continue with Google