It may not be relevant but I am a Brat -- but from the British Army, not the USMC. I cannot claim to be a Leatherneck, just a friend.

I was recently on vacation in DC, and met retired Marine Gordon F Ward, who volunteers to sit by the Iwo Jima Memorial on Saturdays and talk to tourists about his experiences, and the Marine Corps in general. Gordon served in the initial invasion of Iwo Jima and was wounded on the beach, gaining a Purple Heart. He must be around 80 years old by now.

I was seriously impressed with, and moved by, what Gordon had to say, and I am trying to find a way of sending a letter to him. I do not want to invade his privacy and I would not expect anyone to tell me his home address, however I would like to find a way to maybe get someone I can trust to forward a letter to him; maybe another Marine, or maybe the US Government Veterans' Department. (Excuse my ignorance of the exact organizations but I am a foreigner!)

I hope someone here can help me. Thank you.

Doug Stratton

Additional information regarding Gordon F Ward, in case it helps. At the time of Iwo Jima he was a rifleman in Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, and held the rank of Corporal. I believe he was later promoted to Sergeant. He now resides in Kensington, MD. (All this information gleaned by the magic of Google)

I am his son. His address is 7 Waycross Ct., Kensington, MD. 20895.

He is 85 years old now and has a failing circulatory system and probably doesn't have a long time to live (of which he is aware.) He continues to go to the Iwo Jima Memorial, however, and is mentally extremely active.

I know your inquiry was long ago now but, if still relevant, feel free to contact him. Please use his middle initial as his other son, who is mentally handicapped, has the same first name and currently lives with him (still.)

Respectfully,
Frederick Ward

Just finished watching your father on the Military Channel's "Iwo Jima". God Bless him - I'll keep him in my prayers.

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Frederick, sorry for the delay in coming back - many thanks for your reply.

I had already managed to find your Dad, via another Marine on this site who was very helpful, and we've exchanged a few letters since then. I have to admit I've not been in touch for some time due to personal commitments (building my new home and getting married) but I would like to re-establish contact soon.

Can I just say that your father is a true gentleman. What he did for us, along with his buddies, in 1945 can never be forgotten. Arguably, what he has done since is even more creditable. The time he spends at the memorial speaking with people and letting them know first-hand what Iwo Jima was like, and the importance of maintaining the fight against fascism (be that Nazi, Islamic or otherwise) is massive.

Total credit to him. You must be very proud indeed.



PS Phantom Winger, Mr Ward was kind enough to send me a copy of that program. Really inspirational stuff.

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They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

As part of my family's recent vacation to the DC Area, I made it a point to plan our visit to Arlington and the Marine Memorial on a Saturday (8/16) in hopes of meeting Mr. Ward in person, and to have my children meet someone who survived Iwo Jima.


I was disappointed with the signage/directions to get into the Marine Memorial. It turns out you in effect need to stop and make a left turn across a divider on a highway; was that 66 or route 50 maybe? My GPS accurately signaled the turn, but I hesitated because it looked more like a police access road. We missed that, but still found our way off the next exit around Rosslyn and to the outside of the Memorial. While we could see the inner access road, we couldn't figure out how to actually get to it.

In the end we found ourselves back on the highway, and followed it to Arlington Cemetery. At that point we decided to see the cemetery first. After our visit to the cemetery, I inquired at information and got detailed instructions to find the entrance of the memorial.

While we traversed the entire memorial grounds and waited a while, we did not see or could not find Mr. Ward. I was disappointed to not meet him, but more than I hope he is well.