This e-mail from HARTMUT GÜNTHER (6228-2000) speaks for itself. See if you agree.

“We young people in Germany must have respect to our veterans. It is very interesting to listen to these people. The twelve years of the Kriegsmarine is our history too, not a new era begins in 1945. A Navy without tradition and honor and respect to their veterans is not a Navy. A country that forgets his sons who lost their lives in two world wars and shows no respect to their veterans is a bad country.

We young people must make it better and speak to all people who will listen and tell them to give respect to our veterans.

The veterans live in tradition and when they are gone, they will live in our hearts for all time.”

In Germany, the World War II veterans do not have the luxury of an American Legion or a VFW sort of ‘home away from home’. They do not march in parades; they do not appear as guest speakers for anything; they do not make television commercials - they must stay in the shadows and keep quiet - or else! If they become too visible, as a former General did some years ago, the pension checks just stop coming. In their 80’s, their funds are cut off, and that must be terrifying to someone of that age. In the case of this General, he had to move to the same very expensive, high security area of the Spanish Coast by Malaga as OTTO KRETSCHMER (122-+-1985) to avoid German Government agents.

The German Government is doing its very best to ignore these veterans, waiting for the last one to die and then they can begin to erase them from the history books. Damn shame, we think! --HC

JOHN CENTURONI (5882-1999) sent this e-mail:
“First of all, let me tell you that I think your Magazine is one of the finest I’ve ever read. I am cutting back on my reading, but I now realize how much I enjoy reading it, so I cut out Sports Illustrated.”

JOEL WESTERBROOK (6453-2001) sent this note:
“Many sincere THANKS! for allowing me the opportunity to ‘come aboard’ as a new Member of SHARKHUNTERS. The material you sent to me is absolutely fascinating and my only concern is that I may not possess the self-restraint to put it down and do my job (I am writing this while at work).”

Recently, a Member who probably doesn’t want to be identified, wrote that the economy was hitting him and he wrote:
“I enjoy the KTB thoroughly and look forward to its arrival. I had to cut back on expenses recently. Because of that, I had to cancel every magazine I was getting. I will enclose a check for my renewal with this letter simply because I do love our Magazine so much. I’ll explain it to my wife later.”

We helped Chief ANTHONY ATWOOD (5304-1997) YNC, US Navy, with some information and he writes back:
“Thanks you for your help. Sharkhunters rule!”

We just got a note from STEVE JONAS (6177-2000) in which he said that his father, ADOLF ZIESENESS (2428-2000) made a nice presentation to a men’s group about SHARKHUNTERS.
Thanks ADOLF for the presentation, and thanks STEVE for letting us know about it. Another example of Members helping our SHARKHUNTERS continue to grow.

Globetrotting YOYA

We just got a card from our Far-East Representative YOYA KAWAMURA (1739-LIFE-1991) on several subjects, but he was all over the globe but we must ask -- why would anyone go north of the Arctic Circle in the dead of winter? Here’s YOYA’s comments on his visit to Tromso and other places:

“The TIRPITZ sank here in Nov, 44 with the loss of 2,000 lives. The local people never talk about this tragedy. I was taken on a dogsled trip and was served some reindeer stew.”

Who Is...

PAUL ZINSKIE (1317-1989) recently got his first computer and he was having fun looking at all the websites on the Internet. Then he came across one and sent us the following e-mail:
“Who is this guy Uboats.com? He talks as if he’s some kind of authority, but what I’ve seen looks more like recycled Sharkhunters news brief.”