A Daughter Saluting Her Mother....in "Keeping the Spirit of '45 Alive"

There are moments that touch us so deeply that we believe MUST be shared with our readers.

 This is one of them....in response to the dedication Anthem Opinions has made alongside The Vegas Voice in their "Keeping the Spirit of '45 Alive" progam.

From a valued reader...

Nancy Ward

...who wanted to tell us about her mom.

We hope you will attend the show on Wednesday, April  16th at the Henderson Pavilion...

...because if you do....

 This is an example of those we wish to honor.

and we deeply thank Nancy for sending us the story of a hero !

...in order that we too may honor her.

Naomi Flores

 Dick Arendt

Anthem Opinons

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    Remembering a Hero

Heroes:  some are fictitious and seen on television and then there are those who are ordinary people, saving the lives of total strangers from burning buildings or automobiles.  Some are servicemen and women, some are publicly acknowledged and then there are those only known by close friends and families.

I would like to share with you the story of one such heroine, known to her close friends and family and only one of many heroes/heroines who sacrificed more than one should ever have to endure for freedom and one’s fellow man.  

In keeping with “the Spirit of ’45”, I would like to share the story of a young Filipina, born in Baguio, Philippines in 1921.  

Orphaned and according to her account, adopted by an American Army officer, LTC Dawcer (who hailed from Tennessee) this young Filipina played an important role in saving hundreds of lives of both Americans and Filipinos interred in Japanese prisons in the Philippines during WWII.  

In her capacity as a Filipino guerilla, she covertly smuggled food and medicines into the prisons which helped save the lives of many prisoners suffering from malnutrition, starvation, beriberi, dysentery, etc.

She was able to verify identifications and conditions on many prisoners which was passed along to military and intelligence officials, as well as family members.  

Her networking efforts enabled her to collect needed supplies and money from donators which were used to buy needed medicines for those interred without adequate medical care.  

She exchanged money for prisoners and helped smuggle out letters from the prisoners to their loved ones.  

Her desire for freedom, her gratefulness to an American Army Officer who adopted her and her sense of right and wrong all contributed to her decision to fight Communism in her country and greatly aid the American war effort by becoming a guerrilla.

It was through her perseverance, sacrifice and truly heroic deeds that she was formally recognized by the U.S. Government and presented the Medal of Freedom in 1948 at the age of 26.  

This is the actual medal awarded.

This young woman, captured on more than one occasion and tortured at the hands of Japanese soldiers, was fighting for a cause she believed in, namely Freedom.  Freedom, a simple word, whose meaning is literally unknown to millions of those who take it for granted daily, yet so highly cherished by those who truly understand its meaning or greatly sacrificed to attain it. 

And so it is appropriate that this young woman was awarded the Medal of Freedom by the country she swore allegiance to, and subsequently became a naturalized citizen of, after the war.   

This young woman was named ...

 Naomi Flores

 She married an American Army officer, John Francis Jackson (whom she met in the Philippines as he was assigned to investigate war crimes after WWII).  They married and had four children. 

Naomi is just one of the many who exemplify the Spirit of ’45 and I hope the attached affidavit describing her actions during the war as well as the attached photos of her MOF can be useful in keeping the Spirit of ’45 alive.

(Note on the backside of the medal on the right and left sides of the liberty bell, is her name inscribed, although it not real visible in the photo).

Naomi passed in Feb 2013 but will always be remembered by her family and friends and those who lives she touched.

__________________________________________

*The submitter is Naomi’s youngest child and a resident of SCA (and the one referred to in the affidavit as joining the Army.  

That handwritten comment was added by Johnny Mack, son of LTC Edward Mack, who was a prisoner that Naomi worked closely with while gathering information and distributing medicines. 

Unfortunately, LTC Mack did not survive. While researching his father’s life, Johnny found personal letters that his Mother had kept.  The affidavit was one such letter and he provided it to the United States Military Academy so it could be added to their archives; hence his added comments.  

(Anthem Opinions is unable to reprint the affidavit, but if you send us an email

     anthemopinions@gmail.com

 we will gladly send you a pdf you may download)

* It is also the submitter’s personal opinion that the Medal of Freedom presented to individuals during the mid-1940s and early 1950s as a result of one’s contribution to WWII is far different from the medal (by the same name) presented today.  

Back then it was presented to individuals whose courageous, selfless sacrifices contributed to the war effort and it symbolized heroic actions taken without regard of one’s personal dangers.  

Most recently the medal has been presented for humanitarian or liberal arts achievement or political favors and denigrates the previous recipients who truly earned this distinction.