Chester Biernacki was born in 1922 of immigrant parents. He had an older brother. His family lived in a neighborhood of Polish immigrants. His father was in the Polish-American Army during World War 1. He suffered from shell shock, or post traumatic stress disorder. His parents separated when Biernacki was four or five years old so he remembers little about his father. His mother worked in cotton mills to raise her boys. His brother helped provide family income. There was poverty, soup lines, unemployment and prohibition during those rough times. Baseball games on Saturday were memorable for Biernacki. It was highlighted by his mother preparing vegetable soup for their lunch. Years prior to the Second World War were tough. Biernacki learned English when he started school. He graduated from parochial school and went to trade school to become a machinist. Classes were full so he learned instead about automobile mechanics. He decided to leave home to become more independent. He wanted to join the Coast Guard. He was refused due to dental issues. He returned home and conflicted with his brother. He decided to join the Army but the recruiters were out. He left his contact information but grew anxious about going into the Army. He decided to join the Navy instead. He passed the examination but failed the physical because of a sports injury. He went to the Boston recruiting station after his recovery. It was 1 August 1940, and he had his first bowl of Boston baked beans.

Chester Biernacki went to Newport, Rhode Island for boot camp. He liked the discipline of boot camp. He handled lines for blimps and even learned to be a sharpshooter. After boot camp, he was billeted onboard the Constellation which was the sistership to the old Ironsides. It was built in Newport. Afterward, he was transferred by troop train across the United States for assignment on the West Coast. En route, the train stopped and encountered a truck with watermelons. As the train left the station, a boy on the back of the truck was handing out melons to the men on the train. The train reached San Pedro, California. From there, the men were assigned to ships at Long Beach. Japan and America had conflicted politically and the emergency required the men be assigned to ships in the fleet. Biernacki was assigned to the Helena [Annotator's Note: USS Helena (CL-50)]. His brother had cautioned him not to volunteer for anything in the service. Biernacki avoided doing so and ended up in the deck force which did the upkeep of the exterior of the ship. Those tasks included getting the ship supplied, cleaning outside areas, handling boats and so forth. Helena was deployed to Pearl Harbor. Biernacki enjoyed his time there initially. He could not stay off the ship overnight because he was only a seaman at that time. His assigned position on the ship was the five inch, 38 caliber battery. The ship's main guns were six inch guns. There were five turrets with three guns each for a total of 15 six inch guns. The five inch, 38 caliber guns were enclosed mounts. There were also antiaircraft guns aboard. Drill was at least an hour per day for five days a week. Biernacki handled the projectiles for his gun. He enjoyed handball games held off the ship.

Chester Biernacki had a few friends in the 700 man complement on the Helena [Annotator's Note: USS Helena (CL-50)]. He enjoyed going ashore with them. The day before Pearl Harbor was attacked he was on shore leave. He was preparing for breakfast and going ashore on the morning of the attack [Annotator's Note: 7 December 1941]. He had gone topside when the general quarters alarm was sounded. Biernacki responded as his training had taught him and headed for his battle station on mount 4. The ship was hit and shook and men fell to the ground. The men then proceeded to prepare the gun and then fired on the enemy. His mount was enclosed so he could not tell that it was the Japanese who had attacked. During the lull in the air raid, the gun crew went outside and cleared shell casings off the deck. Awnings were cut down and removed to prevent them from being a fire hazard. Battleship Row was a mile away from Helena at 1010 dock. The Row was full of bellowing smoke. It was full of chaos with smaller ships moving about. It was awful with the big explosions. Biernacki watched as the Oklahoma [Annotator's Note: USS Oklahoma (BB-37)] rolled over. Something like the raid had been anticipated because the fleet had been performing training operations and standing wartime watches. Biernacki did what he was trained to do, but he was dumbfounded by the events. His officers were good men. They drilled the men constantly. Biernacki was in good shape from handling the projectiles for the gun he was assigned to. Shortly after the lull started, another wave of Japanese aircraft attacked. The fire from the ships toward the enemy aircraft got so low that it threatened some of the friendly forces. Biernacki had observed a dead man encased in the awning during the lull. As the second attack ended, everyone was on edge. Machine guns were placed on rooftops. Troops were trigger happy. Planes making a landing at night were being fired upon. A few shots ended up creating a crescendo of friendly fire. Some American aircraft were downed as a consequence. After the attack, the crew tried to organize itself. The Helena had been torpedoed. Biernacki lost many of his boot camp buddies at that time. That torpedo went under the Oglala [Annotator's Note: USS Oglala (CM-4)] which was tied up alongside the Helena. The explosion against the Helena blew out plating on the Oglala, and she began to sink. She was towed alongside 1010 dock where she sank. One of Biernacki's buddies was burned from the flare of the torpedo passing through the unsecure ventilation system and reaching his location. A few days after the attack, burning flesh could be smelled from the hospital. The Helena was sent to a new dry dock at Pearl Harbor. She was the first ship docked there. She was temporarily patched and dispatched to be repaired in Vallejo, California.

Chester Biernacki and the ship [Annotator's Note: USS Helena (CL-50)] returned to the United States after the Pearl Harbor attack. She [Annotator's Note: the Helena] was sent to Vallejo, California at Mare Island Navy Yard for repair and refit with new equipment. The ineffective .50 caliber machine guns were replaced as antiaircraft armament. Biernacki had lost friends during the Japanese attack. The ship stayed in Vallejo from January to July [Annotator's Note: 1942] when it got underway to participate in the invasion of Guadalcanal.

Chester Biernacki and his ship [Annotator's Note: USS Helena (CL-50)] were on the way to Guadalcanal when they met up with a troop transport, the Brazil [Annotator's Note: SS Brazil]. They were joined by a CVE, the Long Island [Annotator's Note: USS Long Island (CVE-1)]. They arrived after the first naval battle of Guadalcanal had occurred where many Allied ships were lost during 8 and 9 August 1942. The Helena battled in the area of Guadalcanal as well as 14 other engagements. Biernacki's ship was involved in five major engagements. The five battle stars awarded the ship were for not only Guadalcanal but Cape Esperance, Santa Cruz, Savo Island and Pearl Harbor. The first battle was at Savo Island and, like the others, Biernacki's training took over as he responded during the operation. All the battles were at night. Searchlights were forbidden so as not to reveal the ship's position. The Helena and other cruisers and destroyers took on about 20 Japanese ships. The battles went on through November. The Marines were brought in by the American ships so that they could reinforce Henderson Field. The ships then withdrew with the troop transports and awaited the enemy air force assault on them. The enemy sent in planes that were shot down by multiple Allied ships. There were damages on several other ships, but the Helena was fortunate. While headed to Espiritu Santo, the ship ran into a submarine pack. The Juneau [Annotator's Note: USS Juneau (CL-52)] took a hit and disintegrated. The Sullivan brothers and nearly all hands aboard her were lost as a result. The Helena withdrew from the area and its captain was reprimanded for leaving the area.

Chester Biernacki and the USS Helena (CL-50) participated in several shore bombardments [Annotator's Note: after action near and around Guadalcanal in late 1942] before going in for repairs at Espiritu Santo. The ship took on about 160 French freedom fighters at New Caledonia and headed to Sydney, Australia for repairs and R&R [Annotator's Note: rest and recuperation]. The ship was in Australia for three weeks. Several men got into significant trouble involving court martial. Biernacki never got caught. [Annotator's Note: He smiles.]

Chester Biernacki and his ship [Annotator's Note: USS Helena (CL-50)] and other Allied ships engaged ten enemy destroyers in Kula Gulf. At that point, the ship had expended its flashless powder. Its firing exposed its position to the enemy. Biernacki was in his battle station inside an enclosed lit gun mount. An explosion rattled and shook his ship. Two more torpedoes hit the ship and lights went out. "Abandon Ship" was ordered. Biernacki could not find his life jacket. The ship was breaking in half and the decks were snapping. He knew he had to get far away from the ship so he would not be sucked underwater. He looked back as he swam away, and it looked like two arms upraised for help. He had no life jacket but discovered a life raft. He held on to the exterior life lines on the raft and then a Mae West life jacket floated by. He donned it. Another pneumatic jacket with CO2 charger floated by and he put that on too. The charger was dead so he manually blew up the jacket. He saw ships in the area and let go of the raft and swam toward one. It was the Radford [Annotator's Note: USS Radford (DD-446)] which left him. The Nicholas [Annotator's Note: USS Nicholas (DD-449)] had a cargo ladder on the side and Biernacki grabbed it and climbed aboard. The ship continued to participate in the battle. Biernacki had been in heavy crude oil in the water. There was no fire, but his eyes and skin were burning. About 167 men were lost off his ship. Biernacki was cleaned and given fresh clothes. They returned to Tulagi and were given a salute by other ships. He was transferred to the Honolulu [Annotator's Note: USS Honolulu (CL-48)] for a voyage back to Espiritu Santo. He joined a CB [Annotator's Note: memebrs of a naval construction battalion] group there until he could obtain transportation back to the United States. A Liberty Ship called the Lew Wallace [Annotator's Note: SS Lew Wallace] brought him to San Francisco.

Chester Biernacki returned to the United States and was based at Treasure Island near San Francisco. While there on liberty, he had a great time. He returned home on leave and then returned to San Francisco for reassignment. First, placed on another cruiser, he said he would go over the hill if that did not change. As an alternative, he was placed on a minesweeper. He trained for it at Long Beach where the actor Robert Montgomery was base commander. Biernacki took training courses in several other locations. He was assigned to the Caravan [Annotator's Note: USS Caravan (AM-157)]. The ship assisted with escort duty through the remainder of the war. The ship also piloted harbors around Eniwetok, Saipan, Tinian, Ulithi and Peleliu. The ship participated in the invasion of Guam. They escorted underwater demolition team members, now known as SEALs, on the transport William Ward Burrows from Pearl Harbor for the invasion of Peleliu. The ships passed through a typhoon with 60 foot high waves. The ships would disappear in the surges. That could have been the storm where three destroyers were lost. Biernacki's ship bent in the waves and the paint came off in sheets. It flew through the air like missiles. The ship finally made it to Ulithi where others were assembling for invasion to the Philippines or Japan. The Caravan did a lot of towing. While Iwo Jima and Okinawa were invaded, Caravan returned to Portland, Oregon for refit and inventory. The ship then sailed to Cold Bay, Alaska for turnover to the Russians as part of Lend-Lease. Biernacki was in Cold Bay when the war ended in August [Annotator's Note: August 1945]. The American sailors celebrated with the Russians. Biernacki could understand a little of the Ukrainian language because it is similar to Polish [Annotator's Note: his heritage]. He and only four others remained on the ship to close the deal with the Russians on the Lend-Lease. He returned to the United States afterward.

Chester Biernacki returned to the United States and had two companies assigned to him. He then volunteered to go to the South Pole with Admiral Byrd [Annotator's Note: Richard E. Byrd] as part of Operation High Jump aboard the AK-93 [Annotator's Note: USS Yancey (AK-93)]. The Coast Guard cutter Northwind had to assist in traversing the ice near Scott Island and through to the Bay of Whales. The crew worked 12 hour shifts to expedite unloading cargo for the remote station there. Upon returning to the United States, Biernacki was sent to Tsingtao, China aboard an oiler. He had a good career in the Navy that would be envious to some men. He entered China first in 1949 as the coast was being closed. No one could go ashore alone because of the Communists. They went up the Yangtze River to Shanghai. He was a big man at the time and the rickshaw drivers did not appreciate having to tow him around. The Chinese liked to bargain a lot so the sailors bargained back with them. The Korean War started after he had returned to the United States. He was transferred to Hawaii in 1952 where he served on auxiliary and tug vessels. He went to Attu for air-sea rescue duty. Flying over the Pole made it easier to get to Europe so flights in the region increased. Attu was very desolate with few people. Beer shuttles were made to various nearby military stations and the crew swapped beer for fresh fish and crab. Biernacki may have suffered from post traumatic stress. He was refused promotion but was never busted. While operating out of Hawaii, he worked with navigational systems that would assist with air-sea rescues. He also worked with German V-2 rocket testing in the Pacific. He went on to serve in Pakistan and then returned to the United States in Hunters Point. He met an old shipmate there and was offered an opportunity to run the admiral's barge on Treasure Island. That was where he was when he retired on 30 November 1959.

Chester Biernacki remembers his shipmates on the Helena [Annotator's Note: USS Helena (CL-50)]. He has never suffered from dreams about Pearl Harbor or concerning the sinking of the Helena. Biernacki joined the Navy because he wanted to get away from home and do different things. He stands by that decision. The war made him feel like he should not hurt anyone because it might come back to him. The war made him a better man. He has received a government check since his discharge in 1959. Institutions like The National WWII Museum and the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association are important. The latter has been absorbed in another organization because so many of the survivors have passed. It is important to teach the history of World War 2 just like the Revolution and the Civil War. If the past is forgotten, it might be repeated. Biernacki was glad to release his inner thoughts during the course of the interview. It means a lot to him.