Veterans Spotlight - Sergeant Art Kelley

Wayne Soares — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 14:56:46 -0400

Sergeant Art Kelley is the epitome of a great American story. He served his country in the United States Marine Corps in WWII from 1943 – 1946 in the Pacific Theater and later during the Korean War – a two war veteran. “My neighborhood was all Irish…..tough neighborhood…..we always watched each other’s backs” he remembered. His hands are thick and still strong at age 95. Sergeant Kelley grew up in a very close knit family of six and was 17 when he enlisted in the Marines. He was sent to basic training at Parris Island, NC.

Sergeant Kelley was sent to the Pacific Theater and saw immediate, severe combat action. “We were the sweep up guys…..back up guys….we slept in our jeeps most of the time cause’ that’s all we had….when anybody ran into trouble, that’s when we went in and took care of business…..the Japs were savages…..decapitated soldiers, civilians……anybody” he recalled. “We found a Filipino kid in the jungle…..took care of him…..brought him back to our camp…...fed him……saved his life…..if the Japs had caught him he would have faced a terrible death” he remembered.

Sergeant Kelley had an extremely close relationship with his Marine unit and shared a couple of memories: “Had this buddy, Domenic was his name…..a Jeep exploded and landed on him…..went to see him in the hospital…..doctor told me that his head was split wide open as he lay in his hospital bed and the only thing he said to the Doc was ‘what time is chow?’…….tough kid…..never forget that” he said with a laugh. I asked Sergeant Kelley if he ever had any entertainment overseas and he replied with one word – “No! We were always on the go…..on holidays, we knew you couldn’t do anything about it…..took it with a grain of salt…..wished your buddy happy holiday and that was it.” I inquired as to if he was ever afraid, being a young 17-year old kid thrust into combat. I received a stare and he got quiet and replied, “I was scared…..yeah, scared…..you never knew what was going to happen…..anybody that says they never were was never in combat.”

He also shared a powerful story that still haunts him. “I never have bought anything from China…..when I was there they used human fertilizer in everything, especially food…..we ran into the fields where they would dump the excrement…..those fields…….worst smell….I’ll never forget that” he recalled. Sergeant Kelley also remembered being lost on liberty and running into a missionary priest that invited them in for tea. The priest told him that if the Japanese caught anyone listening to the radio, it was instant execution. He told of a night the Japanese raided his home and the Japanese Colonel called him into the other room and told him he was catholic and spared his life. “We were in Buckner Bay and when we arrived there were only three ships…..next morning when we awoke, there was 3,000…..a chaplain was on the ship…..11:30am in the morning….he says on the intercom, “god is with us…..the second bomb worked’……I’ll never forget that” he remembered.

His thoughts on his service? “The Marines straightened me out…..gave me positive discipline. He continues to be remarkable for his age; mows his own lawn, takes care of his own pool and last Halloween he and his wife Ruth of 71 years, dressed up as The Energizer Bunnies. He is immensely proud of his (9) children and (41) grandchildren. Sergeant Art Kelley, thank you for your service to our great country.

Response by SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth made Jun 1 at 2020 3:03 PM

SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 15:03:42 -0400

Excellent share on this hero brother Wayne.

Response by SGT Robert Pryor made Jun 1 at 2020 3:13 PM

SGT Robert Pryor — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 15:13:26 -0400

Great share. My only point is the most scared I ever was did not happen in combat.

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 8 at 2020 1:53 AM

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 08 Jun 2020 01:53:45 -0400

I love reading stuff like this...thanks for sharing!