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Born and raised in Detroit, Don Graves quit high school after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. Filled with a sense of duty he tried to enlist in the Marine Corps, but had to wait until he turned 17 in 1942.

In training at Camp Pendleton Graves was assigned the flamethrower as his weapon. On February 19th, at 8:00 in the morning, Graves was helped over the side of his landing craft and hit the beach of Iwo Jima in the third wave.

Graves would encounter ferocious combat from a determined enemy on Iwo Jima. The Japanese had carved deep defense tunnels all over the island, including into Mount Suribachi, a volcanic cone at the southern tip of the island that dominated the island from above.

Interview recorded on December 11, 2023



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Video Credits:
Director of Photography Victor Danos
Editor Daniel Taksas