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Following our stays in Manila and on Corregidor we caught a Philippine Air Lines domestic jet to Bacolod, Negros. The stay on Negros was a series of "High Points".

The Bacolod airport is somewhat equivalent to the one here in Santa Rosa – there are no jet-ways, only stairs which are rolled out to the plane. As we went down the stairs we could see this was going to be something to remember! The Mayor of Bacolod was the first person to greet each of our people. Then at the foot of the stairs we walked, literally onto a red carpet which had been rolled out for us. A few feet away a High School Band played enthusiastically, In front of the band a Corp of drum majorettes twirled their batons. On each side of the ramp leading into the airport building Cadets from the Philippine Marine Academy were waiting with crossed sabers for us to pass under. Once inside many local people who remembered individual veterans and who had stayed in contact, were waiting to meet us. For example, I had received a letter from a woman representing a large family with a Hacienda near the North end of the Island asking me if I knew some men they had known. I knew several and as it happened, one of the men she mentioned was with us. He is retired from the FBI and the legislature in Connecticut.   When I mentioned the family to him he was very excited because he remembered the people well. My contact met us and I was able to reintroduce these people. This example is only illustrative of several such connections after 50 years had passed.

As our stay on Negros continued we found our program more or less followed a pattern. We would travel by bus to a town where we would be met by the mayor and a group of local people which included veterans, politicians and local people of importance as well as just plain people who remembered us.

Schools would be let out so the children could come to see the Americans they had heard about all their lives. The children would sing songs or perform dances for us. The Mayor would make a speech, there would be a response and we would retire to a luncheon table where every delicacy was possible would be waiting to tempt us. Each end of the table would hold a whole roasted pig, head and all.

On our first night on Negros we were entertained for dinner at the home of the Mayor.

On our second night on Negros we had dinner in the home of a woman who treated us royally. Her husband had been the head of the local guerilla intelligence. I had met him but had mainly dealt with his operatives. He died a number of years ago.  His wife had a story worth telling: About the time the 503rd had landed on Negros she had twins – a boy and a girl. The boy died of malnutrition and the girl near death. Our of our men gave her powdered milk which she believed all these years saved her daughter’s life. Incidentally, the daughter traveled from her present home in Manila to see the Americans who had provided the milk.

Our group spent one afternoon at Hacienda Rosalia, the Gaston ancestral home with members of the Gaston family. They credit the 503rd with saving the home from being burned by the Japanese in 1945 and are not ashamed to tell about the circumstances. We were told the family has annual reunions when as many as five hundred Gastons return.

One day we helped the Governor Coscolluela celebrate his 48th birthday in the capital building in Bacolod. The old one still stands and I found rooms in it I’d known in 1945. The last evening in Bacolod the governor hosted a dinner in our honor. Again, there were many speeches by both sides. We were just about to leave for our hotel when someone came up to me and said there was someone I should meet. The man was about our age, fairly tall and did not look like a Filipino. He said with a big grin " I Japanese. I up in Mountains". One of our men came up to him, pointed his finger at the Japanese and said "We missed you".  He laughed very heartily and to show there were no hard feelings was at the airport the next day to see us off for our return to Manila. Unfortunately, he spoke little English. I’d have liked to have heard about his experiences in the mountains.

Before we left Manila for Negros I received a letter from Brigadier General Victor Mayo, Commanding General of the Philippine Special Forces Airborne Regiment. He invited us to attend an informal "Gathering of Eagles" as he put it, at Fort Bonifacio in Manila upon our return from Negros. Again there were many speeches on both sides but they led to having General Mayo pin Philippine jump wings on each of our men. In addition they gave each of us Crystal beer mugs inscribed with their Special Forces insignia. This was the last but not the least of our "HIGH POINTS".

Filipinos are a curious lot. They wondered what we were doing in the Philippines, particularly on Negors where they don’t see many Americans these days. We were continually asked why we were there. When we told them we were coming back to commemorate the times we had fought there 50 years ago they understood and almost invariably remarked "Oh, a Sentimental Journey!" and were satisfied. They nod their understanding.

It really was a "Sentimental Journey!".

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ALL PHOTOS © 2000 THE AUTHOR
 

 

Sal Guinta - Medal of Honor

John "Jungle Fox" Lindgren

       

Authors

Topical

Still Photos

Reference Collection

Don Abbott

Reunion Update 1948/1949

David Metherall's Collection

Battlebook - Corregidor

Lou Aiken

Corregidor Revisited - Adams - 2011

Frank Zore's Collection

Japanese Unit & Troop Strength

Robert W. Armstrong

President's Message -  Heritage Bn.

Emmett Wester's Collection

Ft. Benning Monographs

William T. Calhoun

The Rock Patch

Survivors of Corregidor - by State

503d PIR as a Case Study

John Lindgren

The WWII Honor Roll

Bailey/Calhoun Collection

2/503d Vietnam Newsletters

Edward M. Postlethwait

Corregidor After Action Reports

Gems of Corregidor  Collection

Eco Corregidor

Jim Mullaney

 

 

By Order of Maj. Kline

Chet Nycum

Contents Index

Film Clips

Engineers' Report - Corregidor

Verne White

by Article Title

Newsreel - Cleaning Up Corregidor

 

Gerry Riseley

by Author Name

Interview - Clevenger

Full Listing of Recent Articles 

   
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