Lawrence Wayne Holland was born February 22, 1926 in Greenwood, Sebastian Co., Ar. to Walter Atlas & Eddra May Rooney Holland. September 6, 1949 he married Ella Mae LeJong from Fort Smith, Sebastian Co., Ar. According to the US Veterans' Gravesites and the Department of Veterans Affairs Lawrence's service in the US Navy began February 22, 1944 and ended on Octobr 19, 1945. He has a draft registration card that says he registered for the draft October 25, 1945, which means he re-enlisted on that date. THE STORY of WAYNE HOLLAND in HIS WWII NAVY RECORDS BELOW U.S., World War II Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard Casualties, 1941-1945 USS Bryant Wayne was assigned to the USS Bryant during his WWII days in 1944 & 1945 as you can see from the muster records....except for one. He was on the USS Gosper April 18, 1945. The quarter ending March 31, 1944 Wayne is aboard the USS Bryant. It's muster shows that he was received on board March 29, 1944, his enlistment with the US Navy was February 22, 1944 and his rank is S3c. Quarter ending June 30, 1944 the USS Bryant's muster records shows Wayne's rank as S2c, Seaman 2nd Class He was Received on Board March 29, 1944 and his enlistment date was February 11, 1944. On the July 1944 muster he as been promoted to S2c, Seaman 2nd Class His place of enlistment was Little Rock, Ar. July 1. 1944 he was promoted to S1c, Seaman 1st Class. On the March 21, 1945 muster Wayne has been promoted to FC3c or Fire Controlman 3rd Class. In the month of April 1945 Wayne is on the muster of the USS Bryant. It states he is being transferred to the USS Gosper. On 1 April, USS Bryant started two weeks of radar picket duty. Her relatively quiet patrols contrasted with the grim experiences of destroyers on station elsewhere. On 16 April, however, her luck changed. That morning, the Japanese launched a 165-plane kamikaze mission, the third of 10 kikusui or "floating chrysanthemum" attacks launched during the Okinawa campaign. Laffey suffered the first and most intense attack of the day, being struck by no less than six kamikazes, four bombs, and numerous near misses. Bryant received word that Laffey required assistance and rushed to aid her. After turning back sporadic attacks, she found herself the target of a coordinated attack by six enemy planes. First, three "Zeke" fighters closed the warship in a shallow glide. Her port batteries dispatched one, and the CAP splashed another; but the third attacker, though hit repeatedly and trailing smoke, made it through and crashed into Bryant just below the bridge near the main radio room. A bomb from the kamikaze then exploded, engulfing the entire bridge in flames and doing major damage to communication, fire-control and radar equipment. Damage control teams, standing by to assist Laffey, extinguished the major fires within a couple of minutes and soon the wounded destroyer was making 23 knots (43 km/h). Still, despite the prompt response, the attack exacted a heavy toll. In addition to her human casualties, 34 dead and 33 wounded, the destroyer suffered material damage enough to require repairs in the United States, and so she limped back to Kerama Retto to begin temporary repairs. 1945 At Pearl Harbor it was decided to convert the USS Gosper into a much-needed casualty evacuation transport, and she was furnished with operating rooms and other hospital facilities. The ship was to take part in the historic Okinawa invasion, and departed Pearl Harbor 18 March for Ulithi, where she arrived 31 March. Gosper arrived Kerama Retto 6 April, just 5 days after the initial landings on nearby Okinawa. During that grim day the ship was almost constantly under suicide attack as the Japanese tried desperately to stop the invasion. Gosper shot down at least one attacker that day, while transports SS Hobos Victory and SS Logan Victory and LST-4W were sunk. The ship remained at Kerama Retto caring for casualties of the bitter fighting ashore until 17 April, after which she sailed to Ulithi and Guam, unloading her wounded at the Naval Hospital 24 April. Notice that F3c Holland was "Recd. 4/16/45 for "Medical Treatment and transportation."