Veterans Home residents recall their service

TILTON — Veterans comprise approximately 7 percent of the 325 million people living in the U.S.

The New Hampshire Veterans Home in Tilton houses up to 250 veterans, about 85 percent of them men. According to the home's website, residents range in age from their late 50s to 100. Some served in combat, some in other capacities, but all served their country.

On this Veterans Day weekend, here are some of their stories.

Walter Pierce, 99: At the beginning of World War II, Pierce, of Fitchburg, Mass., heard and agreed with a quote from a British politician regarding the potential of the U.S, joining in the conflict. “It is just a matter of time,” he said.

The day after he graduated from college, Pierce joined the Navy.

He spent most of WWII as a pilot, flying PBY seaplanes near Australia. Much of the time he flew supplies, but one day he was requested to drop two men at a Japanese-occupied island so that they could gather information. It was nighttime, and he landed in the sea and sent his passengers off on a mission in a rubber boat. They were from the Office of Strategic Services, a precursor to today’s CIA. That mission and others, he said, was "what I had to do. I did it for my country.”

Eugene Masse, 89: Masse left Woonsocket R.I. in 1948, joining the 3^rd battalion, 7^th Regiment of the Marines soon after high school graduation, and was serving in Korea when that conflict began. The Marine saw much of the effects of the war in the small country. “It was fascinating,” he said, referring to the war's devastation. “I became friends with many of the natives of the country.”

After leaving the military, Masse took advantage – as did many others – of the G.I. Bill, graduating from college as a photographer, which gave him 36 years with Sanders Associates in Nashua. The Veterans Home has also given him an opportunity to share his life’s experiences with students at a nearby elementary school as part of their mentor program.

Veteran of Korea loved the ocean

Pete Martel, 88: The Bennington N.H., native joined the U.S. Navy on October 28, 1947, the day he turned 17. “I loved the ocean,” Martel said. He served on a ship that traveled the South Pacific and he recalled that one day, while on their way to Australia, the U.S. entered the Korean War. His ship was ordered to return to Ft. Lewis, Washington, where they became a troop transport to Pusan, Korea, putting 5,500 replacements onto a ship with a capacity of 3,500.

Many of the troops were asking “where the hell is Korea?” Martel recalled with a grin. He also chuckled when thinking of the famous Navy recruiting slogan, “It’s not just a job, it's an adventure.” Martel spent several years in the Navy and has a fond memory of riding out a typhoon on his ship. He returned to family life in Antrim when his time in the Navy was done.

Service set the stage for afterward

Fred Weissensse, 74:  After growing up in the Bronx, N.Y., Weissensse found his way to college via the Air Force ROTC program, attending Manhattan College, from which he graduated with an industrial management degree. He then spent 20 years in the military, specializing in Air Force communication systems, surveillance and satellites.

He did a lot of traveling in the service and has memories of America’s "Secret War" in 1973-74, when the CIA sponsored Air America flights that ventured daily into places in Southeast Asia it was not supposed to be. He always felt the threat of danger, he recalled. “I went to kill myself every day.”

Upon retirement as a Lt. Colonel, Weissensse continued his relationship with the space program through General Dynamics. He felt he served his country with pride.

Service taught him who he was

Jack Shea, 73: Shea recalled reporting to basic training at a horrific time…the middle of the Tet offensive in Vietnam. He later spent time in Korea with a U.S. artillery unit just below the demilitarized zone. He returned to Manchester to practice law, but Shea also remembers his life experience with the U.S. Army.

“I was very glad I did it,” he said. “It taught me a lot about myself.” Shea said. It also taught him “who runs the army – the sergeants.”

Air Force veteran worked in electronics

Bill Bertholdt, 80: Although he grew up in a Navy family, he chose the Air Force and spent a lot of his time focused on electronics – especially radar.

He served in Alaska and numerous other spots – Europe and Asia, even New Hampshire stationed at the air base in Newington, which became Pease. Upon leaving the military, Bertholdt spent time with Raytheon working on Hawk missiles as well as similar projects at defense contractors Sanders Associates and Lockheed. He proudly serves as president of the Resident Council at the  Veteran’s Home.

“I enjoyed it all,” Bertholdt said of his military experiences.

'When you see a problem, you fix it'

Leslie Greenleaf, 66: He joined the Army Security Agency and participated in electronics intercept practices in the Far East and Europe. He had the rare opportunity to see a U-2 land. The military gave him discipline, he said, and the lesson he learned while in the military was “When you see a problem, you fix it.” Greenleaf, who belongs to the Veterans Home writers group and has written on varied subjects – some day you may be buying his novels.