CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM Donald Stratton autographed a model Grumman F4F for Christian Perdue, 5, during a visit to the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor yesterday as park guide Randy Wester, center, and Christian's father, Lorin Perdue, looked on. Stratton's family came to visit for a reunion and to honor the 65th anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack. CLICK FOR LARGE

Keeping history alive

Veterans, survivors and descendants gather for the attack's 65th anniversary

As military veterans who survived the attack on Pearl Harbor gather in Honolulu for what many describe as their last hurrah, a younger generation stands ready to carry on their legacy and preserve the memory of the thousands who perished on that infamous day.

"This is a very key point in our history, where the Pearl Harbor survivors are in their mid-80s and older and our responsibilities of carrying their mission forward becomes even more critical," said Lee Sandefer, 68, the national president of the Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors.

The descendants' group, founded in 1973, has seen its membership and responsibilities grow in recent years as the veterans have grown frailer and many have died.

Sandefer, a member since 1994, said SDPHS has about 3,000 members nationwide and in foreign countries such as England and Australia. Members support PHS groups in a many ways, including carrying banners in parades, escorting survivors to speak at schools, and participating in memorials and special events, including several in Honolulu this week to mark the 65th anniversary of the Japanese attack that plunged the United States into World War II.

"We try to help as much as possible so their experiences, sacrifices and service are never forgotten," said Sandefer, a retired NCR Corp. manager who lives in San Diego.

Among the group's members are 102 people -- including Sandefer -- who lived through the attack themselves, as the children of servicemen stationed on Oahu.

Sandefer was 3 years old at the time, living with his family on Ford Island, across from Battleship Row. Images remain seared in his mind -- of blackened men emerging from the oily water of Pearl Harbor to hose off in his family's yard; a plane flying just above the treetops, followed by a thundering boom; two sailors lining up rows of bodies.

"I have vivid images" that he's been able to make sense of over the years thanks to the military survivors who have described the day's events from an adult perspective. "They helped me build the story around the image."

Sandefer's late father, Albert Sandefer, was a public works supervisor for the Navy at the time, and survived. But the family rarely discussed the carnage that occurred in their front yard.

"As a small child, I never really understood the full impact of that type of tragedy," he said. Now, "I know it's certainly good for the country to remember these tragedies and to honor those who perished that day and to remember all the Americans who served."

Although the number of military survivors is dwindling, the turnout at the 65th anniversary is higher than expected, organizers say, as multiple generations attend. More than 1,800 people are expected, including about 350 military survivors.

"We have quite a number of members who are bringing family members or whose family are bringing them, as the case may be," said William Muehleib, 84, national vice president of the PHS. This convention "is looked upon unofficially as the last convention (in Hawaii), and as such many family members have wanted to participate, more so than any convention we've had."

Muehleib, who lives in Virginia Beach, Va., is attending with his wife, Jo, and his daughter, son-in-law and four grandchildren.

He was a 19-year-old private first class in the Army Air Corps on Dec. 7, 1941. The aircraft mechanic was stationed at Wheeler but had been sent to Hickam for 12 weeks of advanced training in airframes and engines.

"About two weeks prior to the attack, the school was closed and the students and faculty were pressed into service as a ground defense battalion," standing armed guard around the clock at Hickam's perimeter and its more sensitive areas, Muehleib recalled.

He came off guard duty at 6 a.m. that Sunday, ate breakfast and went to sleep, only to be awakened minutes later by the sounds of the attack.

His group immediately went to man a .50-caliber machine gun, but the Japanese aircraft were out of range. "We could see them, but we couldn't hit them. They were too distant."

Muehleib and his cohorts remained isolated at their gun positions for the next two days.

"As you can well imagine, rumors were just spreading among all of us, and you literally took your life in your hands if you walked around at night -- you would draw fire from people with nervous trigger fingers," he said. "We heard rumors that paratroopers were landing on the North Shore, things like that."

A day or two after the attack, a U.S. military truck came up the road and dropped off sandwiches and canteens of water. "And then someone at headquarters got the disturbing idea that the water in the reservoir might have been poisoned, and they came around with a megaphone saying 'Don't drink the water.' Of course, we already had, so we just sat there looking at one another wondering who was going to die first."

Muehleib's most vivid memories are of the "the sheer exultation" he felt when friends based elsewhere on Oahu turned up alive. "When I think of that, it feels like yesterday."

His daughter, Robin DeLeon, who also lives in Virginia Beach, looks forward to retracing her father's steps and sharing "living history" with her children, Caleb, 15, Carsyn, 13, Camrin, 8, and infant Carrie.

"For them to be able to see it with their own eyes, and to meet so many survivors, I think is a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said DeLeon, 41, who decided with her husband, John, to take the older children out of school for the experience. "We feel blessed that we are able to make the trip, to be with my dad and with all the other survivors. Obviously, their numbers are dwindling quickly. I think it's great that so many families are saying, 'OK, let's go, the time is now, there might not be another chance.' "

It is exactly that familial love and pride that will nurture the legacy of Pearl Harbor long after the last survivor has died, Sandefer said. "It is the story of our country, our families, our lives, handed down through the generations."

Memorial and fundraising events

» Today through Tuesday: Pearl Harbor 65th Anniversary Symposium, Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa. Various times and sites. Authors, historians, Pearl Harbor survivors and Japanese aviators recount historic events in a series of lectures, panel discussions, receptions and bus tours to historic attack sites. See www.arizonamemorial.org or call (888) 485-1941.

» Tonight, 7:30 p.m.: History Channel Documentary Night, Hilton Hawaiian Village, Tapa Ballroom. Event includes viewing of Japanese and American news footage from 1941 and panel discussions. Check www.arizonamemorial.org or call (888) 485-1941.

>> Tuesday, 5:30 p.m.: Gala dinner, Hilton Hawaiian Village, Coral Ballroom. Elegant dinner-dance with Pearl Harbor survivors features 1940s-era live music and entertainment. Tickets start at $250 a person, with proceeds helping to fund a new Pearl Harbor Memorial Museum and Visitor Center. Call (866) 332-1941, visit www.pearlharbormemorial.com or e-mail info@pearlharbormemorial.com.

» Wednesday, 4:30 p.m.: Unveiling of new USS Arizona Battleship Museum scale model, attended by eight USS Arizona survivors, USS Arizona Memorial Visitor Center Museum. Call (866) 332-1941, visit www.pearlharbormemorial.com or e-mail info@pearlharbormemorial.com.

» Thursday, 7:40 to 9:30 a.m.: Commemoration of the attack, Naval Station Pearl Harbor, Kilo Pier, with live simulcast at the USS Arizona Memorial Visitor Center. Also, television station KHNL will air the ceremony live on Channel 8. Highlights will include music by the U.S. Pacific Fleet Band, a rifle salute by members of the U.S. Marine Corps, wreath presentations and echo taps. A moment of silence will be observed as 7:55 a.m., the exact time the Japanese attack began 65 years ago. Former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw is the keynote speaker. A limited number of seats are open to the general public. Access is via Navy boats departing from the USS Arizona Memorial Visitor Center; boats depart from 5:45 to 6:45 a.m. No bags or backpacks. "Crisp aloha" attire required. Attendance by children under 8 is discouraged. Call 422-2771 or visit www.nps.gov/usar.

» Thursday, 11:30 a.m.: Grand opening of the Pacific Aviation Museum, featuring guest speakers Chuck Yeager and Wally Schirra, Ford Island, Pearl Harbor. Call 690-0169 or check www.pacificaviationmuseum.org.

» Thursday, 12:30 p.m.: Groundbreaking for the USS Oklahoma Memorial, Ford Island, Pearl Harbor. The battleship Oklahoma suffered the second-greatest loss of life during the 1941 attack. Call 473-8000, ext. 2579.