John St. Germain was born in Saint John, North Dakota in September 1926. He had four brothers and two sisters. Two brothers were in World War 2 and one was in Korea [Annotator's Note: Korean War, 25 June 1950 to 27 July 1953]. During the Great Depression [Annotator's Note: the Great Depression was a global economic depression that lasted from 1929 through 1939 in the United States], his father was a surveyor and his two older brothers worked on farms. They trapped to provide additional food. St. Germain enjoyed hunting. His father was not a very good man. He drank a lot. He was not very visible after the couple divorced when St. Germain was young. He did not attend school very much. St. Germain’s mother was a nice woman who worked two jobs to support her family. St. Germain enjoyed boxing and going to movies as a youth. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941], he was in the woods cutting fire wood. His two brothers soon went into the service. One went to the Army and the other to the Navy. At 17 years of age, St. Germain opted to join the Navy. It was September 1943 when his father signed the paperwork acknowledging his son’s enlistment.

After enlisting in the Navy, John St. Germain had his boot camp training in Farragut, Idaho [Annotator’s Note: Farragut Naval Training Station is now Farragut Wildlife Management Area]. It was a beautiful place. He learned to march and shoot a rifle. He had previous experience with a rifle [Annotator’s Note: as he grew up hunting in Saint John, North Dakota]. He maintained his weapon well in the Navy. He boxed in boot camp and was camp champion. He had boxed as a youth. After six weeks in boot camp, he was granted leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] to return home. His family expressed their pride in him. After the furlough home, St. Germain was transferred to a ship without advanced training. He went to Bremerton, Washington to board the USS ATR-32. It was an attack and rescue ship that was armed with depth charges, a five-inch gun [Annotator's Note: five inch, 38 caliber naval gun] and two-20 guns [Annotator's Note: Oerlikon 20mm antiaircraft automatic cannon]. St. Germain was a mess cook and learned the 20mm gun. He also cleaned the ship. He was lonely on the ship. He walked the ship a lot to learn about it. His watch station was either at the helm or on one of the wings. He spotted an enemy submarine and the ship sunk it using depth charges [Annotator's Note: also called a depth bomb; an anti-submarine explosive munition resembling a metal barrel or drum]. The experience made him fearful. He was tough in many ways, but soft in others. The crew played cards for entertainment. He did not write to his family very much because he did not know how to do so. He made some life-long friends aboard the ship. One of his loaders was killed while St. Germain operated the gun. St. Germain carried the wounded man down to the medical office. The incident occurred near the Kuril Islands [Annotator’s Note: Kuril Islands, Russia] while ATR-32 was bombarding the enemy. The 20mm gun was a good weapon. St. Germain became a good shot. The enemy planes ventured close to his ship. One was shot down as it approached his ship. It caused St. Germain to become anxious.

John St. Germain was wounded while advancing up Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Battle of Iwo Jima; 19 February to 26 March 1945; Iwo Jima, Japan]. His ship [Annotator’s Note: USS ATR-32, an attack and rescue ship] traveled all over with a task force. Aircraft attacked St. Germain’s ship. While ashore serving as a UDT man [Annotator’s Note: UDT-underwater demolition team] going up Mount Suribachi, he was hit. He volunteered for UDT since he was a good shot [Annotator’s Note: he grew up hunting in Saint John, North Dakota]. He was not a fast swimmer, however, so he gave it up. Before being wounded, St. Germain had accompanied a Marine sergeant who used a flamethrower [Annotator's Note: ranged incendiary device that projects a controllable jet of fire] to force Japanese out of caves. St. Germain shot them as they exited their concealment. He shot about 18 or 20 of the burning enemy as they escaped the hiding places. Some were shooting back at the Americans. St. Germain was hit with a grazing shot across his forehead. He dreams about the experience, but talks very little about it. He awoke one night after dreaming that Japanese were on both sides of his bed. He woke up and they were gone. He does not talk about the dreams. He has never sought any help for this [Annotator's Note: post-traumatic stress disorder like what St. Germain experiences is a mental health condition triggered by a terrifying event either experienced or witnessed]. Treated by the sergeant after he was wounded, he remained on the island for 10 or 12 days. St. Germain does not like to recall that period. He rode off the island on an LST [Annotator’s Note: LST-Landing Ship, Tank] and returned to his original ship in the harbor. He sailed through the Mariana Islands and spent some time on an LST before again returning to his ship. He later served again as a UDT man. As a UDT team member, he cleared obstacles near shore and surveyed beaches before landings to find a suitable assault location. He never discussed the important job that he performed. After landing location surveys, he returned to his ship. St. Germain was also wounded in the foot. He never talked with his family much about his experiences. He did not feel it was significant enough to talk about.

Following the war and his discharge, John St. Germain worked on farms in North Dakota and Montana. He moved to seek work. He was aboard ship [Annotator’s Note: USS ATR-32, an attack and rescue ship] when the war ended. There was little celebration on the ship. The ship had few celebrations while he served on her. He was separated from the Navy as a gunner’s mate second class at Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Navy wanted him to stay, but he did not accept. He took two trains to return home. Later, he wished he had stayed in the Navy. He used the 52-20 benefit [Annotator's Note: a government-funded program that paid unemployed veterans 20 dollars per week for 52 weeks], but not the G.I. Bill [Annotator's Note: the G.I. Bill, or Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, was enacted by the United States Congress to aid United States veterans of World War 2 in transitioning back to civilian life and included financial aid for education, mortgages, business starts and unemployment]. He later wished he had gone to school. St. Germain served in the Navy to get out of North Dakota and because his two brothers were already serving. He was taught respect and discipline during his Navy tenure. He is glad he enlisted. It means a great deal to him today. He killed 18 Japs [Annotator's Note: a period derogatory term for Japanese] while they ran out [Annotator’s Note: he accompanied a Marine sergeant operating a flame thrower on Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima, Japan during the combat there; 19 February to 26 March 1945. He was tasked with killing the enemy as they emerged from the burning hiding place.]. After the sergeant told St. Germain to fire a first shot into a dead enemy soldier, things got a little better. He cannot remember all the details, though. It bothers St. Germain more today as he dreams about all this [Annotator's Note: post-traumatic stress disorder like what St. Germain experiences is a mental health condition triggered by a terrifying event either experienced or witnessed].