Veterans Spotlight - Lt. Marc Jaffe

Lt. Marc Jaffe served his country in The United States Marine Corps. from 1943 – 1946. At the age of 98, he is still sharp as a tack and possesses the trademark humility of The Greatest Generation. He grew up in Philadelphia, PA and was sent to basic training at the famed Parris Island in South Carolina and was sent to OCS (Officer Candidate School) in Quantico.
After graduation, he was sent to Camp LeJeune in North Carolina to join a replacement battalion. His first assignment was a forward observer in the 81mm mortar platoon in the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines, then quartered at Cape Gloucester, New Britain Island. Lt. Jaffe was in two ferocious battles; Peleliu and Okinawa. “We were the first wave at Peleliu….had 26 members in the platoon I was with killed or wounded. I remember throwing myself on the sand….it seemed unreal, almost as though I was in a movie.” He continued, “each end of the beach was a high coral rock and enemy machine gun emplacements. The naval bombardment couldn’t knock’em out so there was constant machine gun fire across the landing…had to keep moving, scrambling to get into the trees and bushes in the corral. There was so much confusion….had a tank attack the first day….tank went right by me….I dove into a hole about 2 feet away. He remembered….I was a Forward Observer….was lucky to get off the beach” he remembered. I asked Lt. Jaffe about the closeness of his unit and he said, comradeship is so crucial in a battle like Peleliu or any other battle for that matter.” Lt. Jaffe also talked about Okinawa. “The conditions there were just terrible….rain was just awful…dug my own trench….had a poncho over my head. I thought to myself, if I can get through this, I can get through anything. A conviction that has served me my whole life.”
I inquired as to what are the qualities of a good leader. Lt. Jaffe responded with this; “the most important thing is to understand the men in your command and pay attention…there’s lots of pressure….you see someone go down who isn’t going to get back up, but you have to keep going….stay focused on the overall mission. It’s not like in the movies with all the drama.” What was the best part of being a Marine? “the closeness….we didn’t leave wounded Marines behind” he said. “I never minded talking about my military experience….actually helped me to talk about it.” I asked Lt. Jaffe his feeling about the war ending and he smiled and said, “an enormous relief. We had been given the plan for the invasion of Japan and now we knew we didn’t have to use it.
It was evident that if we landed in Japan we would have to go through the same things at we did at Peleliu. When the bombs had been dropped, there was a great sense of relief.”
Lt. Jaffe was also awarded The Bronze Star. He also saved a fellow Marine’s life with his quick action, after the Marine was shot in the neck and the blood flowing out of him. Meeting the Marine many years later at a reunion, the man introduced his wife to Lt. Jaffe as “this is the man who saved my life.” Lt. Marc Jaffe, thank you for your service to our great country.