Beach Jumpers

Bill Cochran, a reader from Cambridge, Ohio has left a comment on our Veterans Day journal post. I decided to share it with all of our readers. He wrote:

Veterans Day 2008 had a very bittersweet (to say the least) meaning this year for myself. My dad passed away in April and this was the first year I would not celebrate his duty to his Country with him. To his family and friends, Dad was a very proud veteran and patriot of this great country. Dad was certainly missed as I reflected on his service on Veterans Day 2008. My dad was stationed and my parents were married on Ocracoke during WWII. He was a USN Beach jumper. This very select and secretive group, was the forerunner to today's Navy Seals.

With all of the sadness of this year's Veterans Day, there was something that has brought great excitement and happiness to my family and Dad's fellow members of the Beach jumper Association.

The membership has agreed to hold their 2009 reunion on Ocracoke Island next year. They (Beach jumpers) have also voted to place a marker (Congress won't let them call it a monument without their blessings) on Ocracoke as well. This marker will keep the memories of the Beach jumpers and their history on Ocracoke for many generations. Earl O'Neal has been a great source of assistance and communication in getting this project from the drawing board to becoming a reality. I am including the website link to the Beach jumpers Association, so anyone can learn more about the marker and assist with the project as well.

http://www.beachjumpers.com/

Our latest "newsletter" is a link to my new web site, Black Squall Books, with information about my forthcoming book, Digging up Uncle Evans, History, Ghost Tales, and Stories from Ocracoke Island, which is expected to be available by mid-November. Click HERE to go directly to the web site to learn more.