WOMAN REMEMBERS VETERAN HUSBAND.Byline: Denisse Salazar Marjorie Britt, 84, remembers the day the Japanese suddenly attacked Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor, land-locked harbor, on the southern coast of Oahu island, Hawaii, W of Honolulu; one of the largest and best natural harbors in the E Pacific Ocean. In the vicinity are many U.S. military installations, including the chief U.S. on Dec. 7, 1941. She had friends over at her house and the radio was playing loud. ``We were full of life - dancing,'' Britt said as if taking herself back to that day. ``While we were dancing the music stopped and the announcer said the Japanese just bombed Pearl Harbor,'' Britt said. With tears in her eyes, she said, ``After all these years, it evokes emotions that I thought I had pushed down,'' about the day which will live in infamy Notoriety; condition of being known as possessing a shameful or disgraceful reputation; loss of character or good reputation. At Common Law, infamy was an individual's legal status that resulted from having been convicted of a particularly reprehensible crime, rendering him . Britt recalls her friends were shocked, excited and stunned after hearing the news, but the patriotism was ``like nothing I've seen since. All the boys wanted to sign up,'' Britt said. Then she told her friends, ``I know someone there.'' She was talking about John R.B. Britt -- a chief motor mate for the U.S. Navy she had met a few months before and would later marry. Marjorie had met John not too long before the attack. He was on leave in Providence, Rhode Island  “Providence” redirects here. For other uses, see Providence (disambiguation). Providence is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. where she was from. They were each asked by a friend to accompany them on a date and that's when the encounter happened. ``He was cute and I brought him home and he met my parents,'' Britt said. Shortly after that he went to the Pacific, but they continued their relationship through hundreds of letters. On Dec. 7, 1941, John R.B. Britt was asleep when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Britt survived the infamous attack and would later describe the experience as ``baptism in hell.'' Britt was in the battle of Midway Noun 1. Battle of Midway - naval battle of World War II (June 1942); American planes based on land and on carriers decisively defeated a Japanese fleet on its way to invade the Midway Islands Midway , which was the turning point of the war in the South Pacific as well as serving at Guadalcanal and the Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, independent Commonwealth nation (2005 est. pop. 538,000), c.15,500 sq mi (40,150 sq km), SW Pacific, E of New Guinea. The islands that constitute the nation of the Solomon Islands—Guadalcanal, Malaita, New Georgia, the Santa Cruz Islands, where his patrol boat was patrolling. During this time, Marjorie remembers a lot of racism against the Japanese. ``On buses there were signs that said `Be careful what you say. A Jap might be listening.''' John R.B. Britt got hurt and was sent to St. Albans Naval Hospital in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . Marjorie went to see him and they decided to get married. It was June 12, 1943 in New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. when John and Marjorie waited along with 100 soldiers, sailors and marines to get married. ``It was a war-time wedding in all sense of the word.'' Britt said. ``He went back to the hospital and I went home.'' After he recovered, he returned to fight the war. John and Marjorie were reunited in November 1945 in a hospital room. Marjorie had just given birth to their first son. ``When he came into that hospital room we couldn't talk. We were filled with emotion -- the war is over, my husband is home, and we just had our first baby,'' Britt said. ``To say we were happy is an understatement.'' In 1953, the family moved to San Fernando with their two young sons and purchased a home for $9,860. Marjorie remembers her street was filled with young families from all over the country. They quickly became immersed in their new community and worked hard on a volunteer basis to improve community relations. Marjorie worked as a teaching assistant for the Los Angeles Unified School District The Los Angeles Unified School District (the "LAUSD") is the largest (in terms of number of students) public school system in California and the second-largest in the United States. Only the New York City Department of Education has a larger student population. . Her husband John worked as a machinist for Stainless Steel stainless steel: see steel. stainless steel Any of a family of alloy steels usually containing 10–30% chromium. The presence of chromium, together with low carbon content, gives remarkable resistance to corrosion and heat. Products in Burbank. He passed away Nov. 1969 of lung cancer lung cancer, cancer that originates in the tissues of the lungs. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States in both men and women. Like other cancers, lung cancer occurs after repeated insults to the genetic material of the cell. . CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) Majorie Britt, 84, shared stories of her late veteran husband John Britt with valleynews.com in advance of Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on Dec. 7. Denisse Saslazar/valleynews.com (2) John and Marjorie Britt were married on June 12, 1943. John R.B. Britt was a chief motor mate with the U.S. Navy. Provided by Marjorie Britt special to valleynews.com (3) John Britt |
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