Watchlords

Jacklyn “Jack” Lucas was born on February 14, 1928, in Plymouth, North Carolina. Lucas was always big for his age, and after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, he was desperate to serve his country. While most 14-year-old boys contributed to the war effort through scrap drives and air raid drills, the audacious Lucas forged his mother’s signature so he could join the Marines. When the Marine Corps realized its mistake a year later, Lucas was relegated to driving a truck in Hawaii. Although Lucas was lucky not to have been immediately discharged, he was not willing to sit out the war in safety. Instead, he stowed away aboard the USS Deuel, a transport ship bound for Iwo Jima. Officers of the 26th Marines, unaware of the young Marine’s age, allowed Lucas to join their unit when they discovered him aboard the ship. Jack celebrated his 17th birthday at sea on February 14, 1945.

https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/a ... rld-war-ii