Vogel brothers served their country well in WWII

Three sons of Andrew and Jennie Vogel, George, Frank and John, served in World War II. A daughter, Bertha, was a nurse at military hospitals. She married Maynard Stephenson, a soldier she had cared for who had been seriously injured at the Battle of the Bulge. All of the Vogel children who were old enough to serve their country did.

It was my privilege to spend a few hours one morning visiting George and Frank. Their brother John is deceased.

By Renae B. Vander Schaaf

George Vogel, age 102, was waiting in his room at Landsmeer Ridge when I arrived with Pete De Beer, Vice Commander of Pressman Kosters Post #329. George is the oldest member of the post.

In the 1940’s, most young men paid attention to their draft number. When they were getting closer to their number, some chose to enlist rather than wait for the possibility that their number would be drawn.

“A year or so before enlisting,” said George. “I had read an article in the Popular Mechanics magazine about the Coast Guard. This appealed to me because of my enjoyment of boating and fishing.”

On a hot, humid day in July of 1942, George hitchhiked to Omaha to enlist. Later that same month he was sworn in. He boarded a coal fire powered train bound for California.

“It was hot,” he said. “No air conditioning. Most of the time, the black smoke from the engine came in through the open windows. Our clothes and we were all covered with soot.”

He took his basic training in Alameda, Calif. There was no choice given to the servicemen as to their place of duty. George was assigned to a lighthouse on the Anacapa Island — one of the islands in the Channel Islands National Monument. It became a national park on April 26, 1938.

The often foggy conditions, very steep and rocky coastline provided the right scenario for shipwrecks — including the Winfield Scott, a steamship which crashed into the island at full speed on December 1, 1853.

Around 14 men were stationed on the narrow, five mile long island most of the time. They were transported to the island by a condemned 26-foot skiff. Their duty was to keep a lookout for submarines. Around the clock, 24 hours a day, men kept a watchful eye as they walked outside on the lighthouse’s catwalk.

“Before I came,” said George. “The Japanese had shelled an oil refinery which sat on a hill onshore. About five to ten years ago, the submarine was located with its logbook indicating it had done the shelling.”

In June, of 1943, George came back to Orange City, Iowa. The trip was not just to see family, but rather to begin a new family. He married Joyce Van Steenwyk at her parents’ farm.

The newlywed couple was fortunate to find an apartment to rent in Bellflower. He was no longer stationed on the island, but was sent back to school to study boat building and repair. He then repaired harbor patrol boats at Catalina Island.

Next George was assigned to a weather boat which actually was a 150-foot yacht. He would be gone a month at time. In addition to weather reporting, they also kept an eye on the sky for aircraft.

His next orders were to go to the Philippines. The Coast Guard had been assigned to repair PT boats there. They were anticipating their departure at any time.

“One night around midnight,” said George. “We were mustered out for roll call. They told us our orders had been cancelled.” He still wonders why this news couldn’t have waited until morning.

George never regretted his time in the service. He learned a lot and enjoyed meeting different people.

During his military service in California, his wife was not sitting idle in their apartment. Prior to their marriage, she lived with an uncle and aunt in Bellflower and worked in a dime store as a clerk.

She was able to purchase items often hard to find such as stainless steel pans. After marriage, she worked at Procter and Gamble — packaging soap flakes. She also worked with other women at the church to sew items for the war effort.

Once the war was over, the Vogels considered staying in California. They were happy there. When their first son, Alan, was born in January of 1946, they sent telegraphs to Iowa to inform their parents of the good news.

Andrew Vogel was quite excited over the news of this first grandchild. He sent them $100 to cover the costs of plane tickets. The tickets had to be purchased one at a time on different days. Alan was only three weeks and four days old when this trip was made.

George was offered a position in the family’s paint store in Orange City. With George back, it became a separate business from the paint factory.

George and Joyce settled back in the area to work, raise a family and to be an encouragers to many.

Once our visit with George was over, Pete and I proceeded over to Prairie Ridge to visit with Frank Vogel, George’s younger brother.

Frank also enlisted in the armed services, but not for the same reasons as his brother. He was just seventeen — too young to enlist without parental consent.

“I was working with my dad in our paint factory,” said Frank.

“He said to me

‘Why don’t you learn some discipline?

Perhaps if you were in the service it would do you some good.’”

So, Frank hitched a ride with Cornie Pals who did truck deliveries to Sioux City. Frank enlisted in the United States Navy; but it took a month or more to get his father to sign the consent paper.

He went to boot camp at Great Lakes Naval Station in Illinois. Bob Feller, a legendary baseball pitcher, was there when he was in training. Also a local boy John Swets.

“John was dating his future wife at the time,” said Frank. “We came home on leave and John didn’t