Melvin Munch was born in 1926 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He was raised in the portion of the city that was referred to as the Irish Channel. He attended school there. He had four brothers and four sisters. Munch and his future wife attended the same church and were confirmed together there. They were married in 1946. Life in the Depression was rough but the Munch family was more fortunate than others. The father of the family had a plumbing business and was constantly in demand for work. The family never had to take the free food offered to the poor because they could provide for themselves. The neighborhood was integrated and the children played together. The family home never had to be locked. Munch participated in marching clubs during parade seasons. It was a great neighborhood then as it is now. The plumbing business run by his father is still in the family and being operated today. As children, the youngsters would play marbles and ball at the playground. The girls would jump rope. Some of the activities were questioned by the adults such as bonfires in the streets burning acorns. There was swimming at the civic pools. Munch and his future wife were life guards. There was dancing on Saturday nights in the family home listening to the old Victrola record player. Food was not plentiful, but dancers brought what they could bring. Munch had a part time job with a poultry supplier during this time. He delivered chickens. He would receive broken eggs from his employer for the family to use. He began trade school to learn the plumbing business but then went into the service. After the war, he returned to the school and received his plumber's license. When Pearl Harbor was attacked, he was attending a football game. On the bus ride home, he learned of the attack but had no idea where Pearl Harbor was located. He never dreamt that the United States would be in a war. During the war, children would collect scrap metal for the war effort. They also participated in the savings bond program. The children would spend ten cents to get a stamp to collect toward a savings bond. Munch would work from eight in the morning to eight at night on Saturday for one dollar. He worked there for two years until entry into the service. He was prompted to volunteer because all his friends were enlisting. As he watched them leave for boot camp on the train, they would shout 4-F [Annotator's Note: 4-F is the Selective Service designation for an individual who is unfit for military service] at him. That indicated that he was not physically able to enlist. It was embarrassing for Munch. The day he made 18 years old, he signed up for the draft. He knew he did not want to go into the Army. His preference was for the Navy. His sister had died at the age of 18 prior to this. His parents did not want Munch to go into the Navy, but he begged them so he would not have to sleep in a foxhole. They agreed and he left for San Diego basic training. Little did he know then that he would end up having to sleep in a foxhole even though he became a sailor.

Melvin Munch had a 15 day leave following his basic training in the United States Navy. It took four days each way for the round trip involved to get home and then back to California for his leave. Upon his return to California, he was offered a choice of submarine training or as a gunner on a freight ship. The third offer was for communications school in Hawaii. Munch decided Hawaii was the best offer and took that training opportunity. He never imagined that the training would lead to him climbing trees and poles for installation of telephone wiring. He arrived in Hawaii in September or October 1944 and learned to install and operate a switchboard in a battle field. In March 1945, he shipped out of Hawaii en route to Okinawa. The men knew they were headed to a war zone but did not know exactly where. They landed at Guam and Munch was put on supply duty and loaded cargo on their transport ship. He was having lunch in the mess hall when a war correspondent came up to him. The correspondent introduced himself as Ernie Pyle [Annotator's Note: Ernest Taylor Pyle]. Pyle was a famous war reporter who had been covering the war in Europe before it ended. He talked to Munch and the other fellows. Later, Munch learned that Pyle had been killed on Ie Shima which was a small island offshore of the larger island of Iwo Jima [Annotator's Note: Okinawa]. He raised his head up one time too many. There is a monument to him on the island where he was shot.

Melvin Munch was part of the invasion of Okinawa when it commenced on Easter Sunday in April 1945. He rode a landing craft to the beach during the invasion. Unlike what he told his mother, he spent time in foxholes during his stay on Okinawa from April through October 1945. [Annotator's Note: Munch had mentioned earlier in the interview that one reason he told his mother that he wanted to enlist in the Navy was to avoid spending time in foxholes like the men who were drafted into the infantry had to do.] Munch performed field telephone installations where ever it was needed. He was a member of Public Relations Mobile Communications Unit Number One [Annotator's Note: cannot verify unit]. It was composed of 50 sailors, 25 Marines and five naval officers. One man in the outfit was lost during the war. Where ever Munch went, he had two Marines protecting him from enemy snipers. The Marines would hear firing and go off and find the sniper and eliminate the threat. The night the war ended, there was so much shooting into the air that ten or 15 men were killed. Air raid alarms were sounded in order to stop the shooting. The cook that Munch knew said he was at Pearl Harbor when it was attacked, and he was on Okinawa when the war ended. The cook demanded to go home and was sent home on leave. There was no cook for the outfit as a result. Since Munch had some experience back in New Orleans with a bakery, he was assigned to be the cook. After he returned to the United States, he was assigned to be the ship's cook on the USS Rankin (AKA-103)]. Munch even attended ice cream school and received a diploma saying he was trained to make ice cream. When the war came to an end, Munch did not have enough points to be discharged immediately. Ultimately, Munch returned to New Orleans where he was discharged in June 1946.

Melvin Munch was introduced to the Navy in boot camp in San Diego. It was rough. Getting up early each morning to begin the day meant that everything was done on a precise time schedule. He survived it and even managed to enjoy it. He was in boot camp from June to September 1944. He was physically fit when he completed the training. When given the choices of further training in submarines, becoming an armed guard for merchant ships, or learning amphibious communications, Munch selected communications. He was satisfied with his selection. It led to his service on Okinawa. According to Winston Churchill, the battle of Okinawa was the bloodiest battle of World War 2. The most memorable thing of the battle of Okinawa for Munch was the odor of war. The smell of decomposing bodies was horrible. The Americans would try to retrieve their dead and take care of the bodies, but the Japanese would not attempt to do the same with their dead. The island of Okinawa was littered with enemy dead and in some cases American dead who could not be retrieved expeditiously for proper burial. The smell was so bad that Munch started smoking cigarettes in order to offset the stench. When Munch left San Diego en route to Hawaii, he was aboard an LCI, Landing Craft Infantry. It was a small ship with a crew of just 20 enlisted and 4 officers aboard. It took ten days to voyage from San Diego to Hawaii. The aircraft carrier USS Saratoga (CV-3) left San Diego three days after the LCI and still beat the LCI to Hawaii by four days. When Munch arrived at Hawaii, he wanted to see the harbor where the attack had occurred. He has returned to Pearl Harbor for the commemoration of the anniversary of the attack. Likewise, he had brought his family to Okinawa to see where he was in action. While at Pearl Harbor above the Arizona [Annotator's Note: USS Arizona (BB-39)], he talked to survivors about their experiences.

Melvin Munch stopped at Guam en route to Okinawa. He was concerned about the requirements of going into a war zone. He never thought he would sleep in a foxhole. [Annotator's Note: Munch had mentioned earlier in the interview that one reason he told his mother that he wanted to enlist in the Navy was to avoid spending time in foxholes like the men who were drafted into the infantry had to do.] With the monsoon weather, the men had to bail out the water from their foxholes when an enemy air attack forced them to take shelter in their holes. Air raids were frequently at night. Four hours of sleep was a good thing. The landing on Okinawa went easy. The enemy had moved off the beach so the Navy bombardment did not hurt the defense of the island. When the American troops moved inland, the real fighting began. It was there that the odor of battle took over. The stench of rotting bodies was horrible. The odor stayed with them constantly. It was bad to breathe at times during the 82 day battle. There were over 200,000 killed in those 82 days. The civilians suffered heavily during the battle. There were passwords given to prevent enemy infiltration. When civilians would attempt to scavenge food at night, they did not know the password. As they approached, they sometimes were shot for not giving the proper password. There were civilian suicides with women and children. Munch saw some of those bodies. The memory has stayed with him through the years. The island was called secure even as fighting continued. There was a castle called Shuri Castle. It was over 400 years old. The walls were four feet thick. The Japanese said the Americans would never capture the fortification in 100 years. The Marines captured the installation in six days. Munch had a chance to visit the battle site. He observed a Confederate flag flying from the ramparts. The Marines were under the command of an Army officer named Buckner [Annotator's Note: US Army Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner]. Buckner ordered the Confederate flag lowered and replaced with the American flag. The Southern soldiers booed; while the Northern soldiers cheered when the Confederate flag was lowered. While on Okinawa, a typhoon blew into Okinawa. There were winds of over 200 miles per hour. With their temporary shelters blown away, the troops had no place to evacuate except where the Okinawans buried their dead in the sides of mountains. When the troops came out of their shelters after the storm, they were covered with fleas. They had to soak themselves in diesel oil and cut their hair off. They had to find fresh water to wash off the diesel. Meanwhile, the enemy continued to cut telephone lines and Munch, with an escort of Marines, had to repair the damaged lines. The Marines would eliminate the snipers trying to hinder his progress. Once, on guard duty, Munch saw the enemy fire on the captain's tent. The next night, during an attack, the captain went berserk. The lieutenant commander had to take over for the captain. Lieutenant Commander McCabe took over. While on Okinawa, there was a lot of down time. The men played ball where the CBs [Annotator's Note: members of naval construction battalions] had cleared an area. The men would write letters or toss horseshoes. Kay Kaiser with his band along with Betty Hutton put on a show for the troops on Okinawa. The men watched the show on empty ammunition cans in the rain. Hutton came on stage intoxicated. Her appearance disgusted Munch. It influenced his feelings toward her for the rest of his life. He also saw Bob Hope and Jerry Colona with their shows given for the troops. When the island was secured, the Americans got the Okinawans to do work for them. They would pay them with candy or soap. That made the civilians very happy. The chocolate bars were made by Hershey and were intended to be a meal in itself. C rations were not bad but K rations were the worst. The potted meat and Vienna sausages were great compared to K rations. The men were told not to eat the indigenous food or drink the water because the islanders used human waste to fertilize the crops.

Melvin Munch corresponded with his future wife back home while he was on Okinawa. The letters had to be reviewed by officers prior to being mailed so that restricted information could be eliminated. Often times, his girl at home did not know what he was saying because so much of the information had been censured from the letter. He also sent mail to other family members and some members of the church. Sometimes letters would come in several at a time, but days would go by without any letters. He communicated with very few of his friends. Munch did enjoy staying in touch with members of the Rankin [Annotator's Note: USS Rankin (AKA-103)] and attended reunions with them. The ship was in the war prior to Munch joining the crew. It survived numerous Kamikaze attacks. He learned after he was assigned to the ship that he had returned to the United States after the war aboard that ship. Munch had no communication with any of his unit on Okinawa. One sailor that was killed on Okinawa had made a pact with Munch that the surviving individual would visit the family of the man who was killed in action. Munch did not have to do so because another sailor volunteered to do so for him. Munch would have fulfilled the obligation to the dead friend, but he was relieved that he did not have to do so. The Rankin survived many Kamikaze attacks. There were frequent air raids on the island of Okinawa. One Kamikaze pilot did not follow through with his planned assignment. Instead, he landed on Okinawa. The prisoner was brought to Munch's outfit because they were the Public Relations Mobile Communications Unit One [Annotator's Note: cannot verify unit]. Information from war correspondents and others were sent stateside via their unit. The prisoner was interviewed and his information was sent back to the United States. While most Kamikazes were dedicated to the Emperor, this one prisoner did not think his life was worth losing for the ruler of Japan. Munch wanted to live and not die for his country. Long after the war, Munch was opposed to buying anything made in Japan. He later modified his attitude. In returning to Okinawa, he saw a lot of favorable changes. While on Okinawa during the battle, Munch kept up with the events going on in the war. He would watch the bombers flying over the island on their way to Japan. His unit was going to be part of the invasion of Japan. He was relieved that he did not have to go on that assault. A group of American prisoners of war, POWs, were being transported back to the United States from Japan. They stopped on Okinawa. A buddy asked Munch to bake a cake for his brother who was one of the POWs. When the POWs saw the cake, they dove into it with abandon. The POWs had been starving and the sight of their appreciation for the cake greatly affected Munch. [Annotator's Note: Munch chokes up at the memory of the POWs hungrily eating the cake.] When Munch attended a reunion of the Rankin, the captain of the ship named McDonald reminded him of the special apple turnovers that Munch would prepare for the officers and crew to enjoy after they watched a movie onboard the ship.

Melvin Munch was discharged in 1946. He had volunteered to be the unit baker while on Okinawa because the traditional service rations were not very appetizing. He started baking bread on Okinawa and then, while on the Rankin [Annotator's Note: USS Rankin (AKA-103)], attended ice cream school to learn to make ice cream. He made five gallons of ice cream at a time. He would make ten or 15 gallons at a time and store them. It was mostly chocolate or vanilla flavored. There was not much fruit available to make any other varieties of ice cream. He did not have the opportunity to make ice cream on Okinawa. There were beer and cokes available on Okinawa, but not enough beer was issued to get any troops drunk. The men had to stay in the immediate area while they drank their beers. Munch was never much of a drinker. While on the Rankin, Munch would bake pies. The unit that Munch served in while on Okinawa was divided into three outfits. There was headquarters, transmitting and receiving sections [Annotator's Note: Munch states that he served in Public Relations Mobile Communications Unit Number 1, however, this unit designation could not be verified]. Men would come and go on Okinawa. He would make ten pies a day. On the Rankin, there were 250 men aboard. Munch had help to make as many as 500 apple turnovers during one day. It would serve two turnovers per man per day. During his service, Munch made many friends. While aboard the Rankin, the Marines would be taken out for training exercise. The quarters for the troops were very cramped. Some conditions were even disgusting. War was hell in many ways. Once Munch returned to the states aboard the Rankin, he was discharged.

Melvin Munch would have been part of the invasion force for assaulting the Japanese home islands. The atomic bombs kept Japan from being annihilated. The American bombers would have destroyed Japan. Those who criticize the dropping of the bombs do not realize the millions of lives that were saved. America would have had over 200,000 casualties as a result of the invasion, and millions of Japanese would have died. V-J Day was celebrated aboard ship. He heard the war in Europe was over earlier and he was happy. He also heard of President Roosevelt's [Annotator's Note: President Franklin D. Roosevelt] death before the war ended in Europe. He was glad that the war with the Germans ended in their defeat. The memory of war for Munch mainly centers on his discharge, the odor of war, Okinawan civilians being killed, and his friend asking him to bake a cake. [Annotator's Note: Munch was asked by a friend to bake a cake for his brother who was returning from a Japanese prisoner of war camp. When the prisoners saw the cake, they hungrily gobbled it up using their hands. It was an extremely emotional moment for Munch to witness the starving Americans enjoying his cake.] Munch fought in the war because he wanted to protect his country's freedoms. He loved the way he lived in the United States. His service made him a better American, husband, and a better father. He learned the importance of the values in life from his experience in the military. He tries to help people in need as a result of his service. He enjoys the freedom to vote and religious freedom. There are philosophical differences with some politicians but maintaining American freedoms is important. The National WWII Museum is important to continue to teach the young about their freedoms they enjoy today. If the war had been lost, the country might be under German or Japanese control. Those enemy countries were harsh and cruel to the peoples they conquered. Where the Japanese performed atrocities on civilians and captured Allied soldiers like at the Bataan Death March, today the Japanese treat Americans with respect. The odor of war was terrible on Okinawa. The enemy would not pick up their dead. They left the bodies to rot. Munch was aware of the atrocities committed by the Japanese on Okinawa through his travels across the island as he was stringing communications wire. He saw little fighting but did have occasion to be fired on by snipers. The Marines that escorted Munch were gung-ho. The Marines volunteered to go up front to the action even during their off time. That was why they joined the Marines.