Francis X. Greeley,
S1c - Dorchester MA
December 12, 2002
I was glad to find your web site
with the full story of LST 282. My Dad was Francis X. Greeley. Upon
reading the horrific accounts of August 15 off the coast of Southern France,
and knowing his frightening experience in the English Channel after D-Day,
I am amazed at my Dad's quiet, gentle strength.
In August, 1944, Frank Greeley was
barely 18 years old, an enlisted man from the Dorchester section of Boston,
MA. Dad was only on board 282 for a few weeks, as he had served on the
short-lived LST 376 since boot camp. LST 376 was sunk by an
E-boat torpedo in the early morning hours of June 8, returning from Omaha
Beach. Dad did not know many of the men on 282, and didn't discuss the
horrific events of the night of August 15 until my daughter was born on
August 15, 1991. Dad said that we (our family) should thank God that he
was on deck that night.
Astonishingly, Dad never learned
to swim, possibly due to his impromptu dunking.
Dad spoke in more detail about June
8 and August 15 when he returned from the 50th reunion of LST 1129. Dad
served on 1129 through his honorable discharge in 1946. He returned
to Boston, married and raised four sons. Dad lived in Norwood, MA
from 1953 until his death in June, 1995.
Michael Greeley -- mgreeley<at>attbi.com
