Men who fought there still remember llew the black ash turned to red. Evuy lacb of tslaad taker Cost the Ilves of men left dead. New the lslaad ls a legend. All ls peaceful and serene; ft remalna a shrlne and legend To the name. U. S. Marine. – Carl Dearbora The ghosts of Iwo Jima live in merruory today. 40th anniversary of the Feb. 19, 1945 World War Il rnvmion of the tiny Pacific island by American Marines. Two prominent Orern mer Kelth A. Renstrorn and J. Murray Rawson – ruruinlsced about their former role as Martuuea in lwo’s “D-Day” arud the bloody 26-day fiht to wrest the ble from the Jagguese. th men remember wltlr fondness Carl Dearborn of their outfit. who pained the lines quoted aboveinoneofhispoemsinsplred by the lwo Jima camPN”Renstrour and Rawson, longtime friends – now neighbors on the same block – joined in this evaluation: Though the toll in mm killed and wounded in capturing the strategtally-located island was awesome. the victory was worth the coat. 3 Aa Renstrom said: “lwo Jima became a keystone in the American drlve in the final months of the Pacific War and enabled America to save an untold numbs of lives in the long run.” . Perhaps there wee others in Utah Valley who were involved in the invasion of lwo Jima. Rawson cg Resrstrom are the only ones had come to this writer’: attention by prus-time. A Provo man, Owen Robertson. was a stall sergeant and flight engineer with the Army Air Corps in the “softening up”bomlr ing of the lsland in the months preceding the invasion. Robertson, who ope-ated from the top turret of a B-24 Liberator bomber, remember that it was difficult to slght Japanese soldiers. Most of them ohviouly were inside unda-ground and concrete fortifications. The biggest threats to the bombers which Robetson recalls were phosphorus burrbs. released frorru enemy fighter planes. which would explode in the air. Renstrom was a gunnery sergeant with the F Company. 2nd Battalion, 25th Regrmuut. 4th Marine Division. Called “Gunny” by his men. he suffered battle wounds in combat actions in Saipan and Tinian as wdl as at lwo Jima. At Tinian. a .10 caliber bullet coursed through his right leg at the thigh. He was with the Feb. 19 invasion force. After ll days of in tense combat he suffered facial. arm and back wounds from a Japanese hand grenade arud stlll carries as “souvenlrs” three pieces of shrapruel in his body. In a ll! book on U.S. Marines in World War ll, author Henry Berry quotes Pfc. Stan Ellis as sayx of Renstrom: ” er I first met my gunnery sergeant. I couldn’t believe someone like him exlsted. in the Marine Corps anyway. A gunny who didn’t smoke. drink, swear or chase women – it never happmsf! But Keith Renstrorn is truly a Marine’s Marine. Our company would have gure to hell and back for this guy, and I guess we just about did.” Pfc. Rawson was in charge of combat loading for 18 ships. This delayed his going ashore one day until Feb. N. Interestingly, when he approached the battle-scarred beach, Rawson accompanied Joe Rosenthal of Associated Press who photographed one of the two memorable flag-ralslngs on Mouuut Suribacbl Feb. Ll. “Rosauthal. carrying his cameras, had no jacket and it was cold.” Rawson recounted, “I took my jacket off and gave it to him. The captain of the ship. who had been watching. opened s locker and gave me a heavy Navy jacket to keep me warm, Rawson told how he watched through binoculars from a distance on the 23rd as fellow Marines hnisted the Stars and Stripes over Suribachi. Reunstrom and Rawson used a map of Iwo Jima in an interview at tlue Herald to show how the Marine invasion force fought its way toward Surlhaclti. the M6foot volcanic peak. then swung right along the island. The going was ”rough” every step of the way. The two men spoke of the volcanic ash that covered much of the terrain. Marines would sink into the soft surface to their ankles and deeper. said Renstrorn, After sufferirug his serious battle wounds, Renstrom was taken to Guam by hospital ship. Rawsoa continued for the duration of the Iwo Jima campaign. Obviously with great respect for each other, the two men engaged in animated recollections of the Iwo battle during the interview. At night-time, Renstrom was lading a contingent helping the wounded to safety when by the light of U. S. star shells. he detected a Japan e minefield by trac “lead thumhs” that protrude , “I instructed the mm to follow precisely in my footsteps,” Renstrom said. “Then I picked my way through the mined area and the others followed without incidmt.” When Rawson first joined the outfit in the field. the C.0. told him to “dig yourself a foxhole.” He obeyed but threw his jacket over the hole and ducked behind a large rock what the enemy started shelling. “Afterward there was a hole in my jacket and underneath I found a large plece of slurapruel.” Rawson, was responsible fu capturing two Japnse soldiers. who were quatimued by US. offlcers. Rerustrorn had some humorous recollections. One involvd Ind Lt. Francis S. Craif who became sqrarated at niht rom his group and bedded down in a foxbole. At daybreak he and the occupant of a nearby foxhole both stood up. The other soldier was Japanue. The two ran in opposite directions to join their outfits. Asked why he d1dn’t moot the enemy soldier. Craig replied; “Look. you’re not supposed to kill your bed partnu-.” Rawson told how Americana. entulng an uuemy cave. found a lodal safe. “We hal a Marine from New York who sald he had blown safes bdore.” the Orem man related. “lnslde it we fund ;’;l’.l.$’ “u'”‘”‘” “‘ ‘”.:.’r”””” us passe muey. 1’hls we maimed and l rectived sornnhlng like $83.00). l sold or gave away it for souveRenstrtan md Rawaon told of a meeting of march of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint servlccnur in the library of a ship the night bdue the lwo hrvasfm. “Eads of the lb mar gave a testlmmy.” sald Renstrom. “I was last and 1 wondrd how many d us would be spared. Two of those mm wee killed the fh-st Before t.be lnvmlnn Ranatrorn gave Rawson some private coaching ur use d the Marine rifle wnlre me two mm were aooaru ship. “I learned to take the weapon apart anatmzut it together again with my h s under a blanket,” recounted the latter. The practice paid off. Orue night in combat the rifle was so jammed with sand that it was inoperable. “Thuee in the dark. I took it apart, cluned it. and put it together again.” One day Rawson and a buddy were relaxing in a gully eating their rations. when a hand reached out from a hole and pulled one of their helmets under ground. Possibly an enemy soldier inside was hungry and ttrought the headgar might contain food. Quickly the Marines pumped a smokescreen into the hole — and srnoke blllowed out from numerous holes in the ground. i Renstrom is reduction managu for Brazell &anufacturing Co. Rawson, semi-retired, works in real estate. Both are active church menu, Rawson has been a bishop. mlsslon president and stake presidency manber. Renstrom’s church expe-lence has included service in four bishopries.