Donald B. Wilkins, Boatswain's Mate 2/c, born April 5, 1920, Metcalf, AZ. He entered the USN Dec. 7, 1939; attended boot camp at San Diego NTC; and served aboard the USS West Virginia, 1940-41.

He was a plank owner on USS Shasta (AE-6) and was commissioned on Jan. 20, 1942. He served aboard three years and transferred to the USS Solace (AH-5) as a patient. He returned to the States and served duty at NAAS Patrol Plane Base, Elizabeth City, NC, and duty at NAAS Oceana, VA.

He was discharged at Camp Shelton, VA, Dec. 15, 1945, as BM2/c. He has all the area medals given for that period of time.

He and his wife, Jane, have four sons, one daughter and five grandchildren. He was a farmer for six years, a teamster for 20 years and a sales representative for 11 years. He retired in 1982.

Reprinted with permission from Turner Publishing.

Don Wilkins is on the right in the photo below with James "Jeep" Apple
Click the photo for a larger view

Donald B. Wilkins passed away on December 20, 2011.