Russell Clay was aboard the USS Helena (CL-50) when it departed California for Hawaii. She spent ten months there before returning to the West Coast for an overhaul and new gun replacements. It was 1941 and Clay married his childhood sweetheart. The Helena returned to Pearl Harbor in October 1941 and operated around the islands conducting amphibious landing maneuvers. She was moored at 1010 dock two weeks before the attack [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Sunday, 7 December 1941]. The ship's battle readiness was at a lower level while in the harbor compared to when she had been at sea. While at sea, the concern was high for a Japanese submarine attack. Condition Two would have set half the crew at battle stations; however, it was never ordered by the ship's officers. Clay was a ship's barber. The morning of the attack, he delayed going to his Barber Shop. Coincidentally, the alarm was sounded. The Japanese were attacking Pearl Harbor and Ford Island. The Helena was hit quickly by a torpedo during the attack. Battleship Row had not even been hit. Had he gone to the Barber Shop, he might have been killed. Two buddies present in the shop died of burns they sustained. Since Clay could not reach his battle station on the pom-poms [Annotator's Note: 1.1 inch automatic antiaircraft guns], he fought fires below deck. Later in the morning, he did manage to reach his battle station. All through the remainder of that day and night, trigger happy gunners opened fire on suspected targets. After the attack, the ship went into drydock. The Pennsylvania [Annotator's Note: USS Pennsylvania (BB-38)], the Cassin [Annotator's Note: USS Cassin (DD-372)] and the Downes [Annotator's Note: USS Downes (DD-375)] were in the other drydock and had received damages. Clay was amazed at the destruction he witnessed when he went above deck. The harbor was hit while Japanese envoys were negotiating peace in Washington, D.C. The Helena returned to the United States and had its engine room replaced. She also had armament upgrades before returning to the Pacific for the Guadalcanal phase.

Russell Clay and his wife were together while the USS Helena (CL-50) underwent repairs and upgrades on the West Coast. The couple's eldest son was born while Clay was in combat at sea during October and November 1942. The Helena engaged strong enemy opposition and sustained some damage and casualties. Multiple American ships were lost during the conflicts. The Juneau [Annotator's Note: USS Juneau (CL-52)] was one of those lost. She exploded like one large bomb and there were extremely heavy losses including the five Sullivan brothers. Those losses linger in Clay's mind. The captain of the Helena [Annotator's Note: later US Navy Rear Admiral Gilbert C. Hoover] was a great skipper. Six of the 13 ships were sunk. With that in mind, he felt it his duty to save the remainder. After that series of engagements, the Helena went to Sydney, Australia for drydock check-out. The men had liberty during that time. The Helena operated around the South Pacific until 6 July 1943.

Russell Clay and the USS Helena (CL-50) headed for Kula Gulf. That was the same location that John Kennedy [Annotator's Note: President John F. Kennedy] had his PT-boat destroyed. Kennedy hurt his back after his crew ended up in the water. The Helena was sunk there in a night engagement. Three torpedoes broke the ship into three sections. Clay was in the middle section. The survivors were in the water and on several life rafts. Clay aided a non-swimmer before he swam for the mountains in the distance. He swam for two hours and then returned to the life rafts. There were many men in the water. Destroyers began retrieving survivors, but a submarine alert disbursed the rescue ships. The Helena's engineering officer was sucked under a withdrawing ship. When the destroyers returned, Clay managed to get aboard one of them but sustained a minor injury to his foot. The bad bruise went away after a day or two. The Helena's survivors stayed in Espiritu Santo with the Seabees [Annotator's Note: members of a naval construction battalion] taking care of them for a couple weeks. The supply ship SS Lew Wallace brought them back to the United States. After a few scares at sea, the ship reached San Francisco where the rudder jammed. The men stayed at the abandon ship stations while the ship drifted through mine fields. A tow was necessary to bring the ship to San Francisco harbor.

Russell Clay was assigned to the USS Houston (CL-81) which was being completed in Newport News, Virginia. He had his family with him while the ship was being finished. After a shakedown, the ship sailed through the Panama Canal to the Pacific. The Houston fought in the battles of Tinian, Guam and Saipan as well as Okinawa. She headed to Formosa to draw out the Japanese fleet prior to the invasion of the Philippines in 1944. On 14 October 1944, the ship was torpedoed by a Japanese plane. The engineering spaces were flooded and power was lost. Two days later, two more torpedoes hit the Houston after a seagoing tug was assigned to tow her. Two more enemy planes attacked the Houston. Clay was assisting a 20mm gun crew after his gun mount was knocked out. He witnessed a torpedo being dropped, aimed directly for the ship. The hit engulfed the ship in aviation fuel. Clay got into the water. He had to avoid burning gas on the water. He climbed up on a stack of coffee beans to rest. A rescue ship picked him and other survivors up. Clay was able to identify some of the dead. He talked to some of the survivors before they died. He was transferred to another ship on a bosun's chair. Another transfer occurred after that one. The Houston was towed to Ulithi and saved. She was then towed to New Guinea and a floating drydock. Repairs ensued with some compartments being too damaged to repair. Engineering spaces were made ready sufficiently to power up. Under her own power, Houston made her way to Pearl Harbor and then San Diego before going through the Panama Canal. She was sent to Brooklyn Navy Yard for further repairs. The atomic bombs were dropped and Japan surrendered while the ship was undergoing repairs. After completion of the repairs, Houston made way for a series of goodwill tours to the Mediterranean, the British Isles and Norway. Clay enjoyed climbing a mountain in Norway. He left the ship in 1946 and was discharged at Great Lakes Naval Station in July 1946.

Russell Clay has some regrets that he did not serve more than six years in the Navy. He enjoyed his service and could have stayed for 30 years. He has reunions with the USS Helena (CA-75) crew that served in Korea and Vietnam. He has attended USS Houston (CL-81) reunions also. While in service, he enjoyed liberty in Sydney and Honolulu. Clay was discharged in 1946 as Ship's Serviceman Barber 1st Class.

Russell Clay joined the Navy originally because of the tough times during the Depression. His father tried to take care of more than just his family. It was very expensive to do so. Clay had worked at a few jobs but then decided to go into the service in 1939. He was turned down at first because of his physical condition. The Navy accepted him in 1940 in Cincinnati. He went to boot camp in Newport News in July 1940. He became a barber because he learned to cut hair from his father.

Russell Clay was at Pearl Harbor prior to the attack. [Annotator's Note: Clay served as a barber and antiaircraft gunner aboard the USS Helena (CL-50). He and the Helena were in Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked it on Sunday, 7 December 1941.] There were battles of the bands between major ships. Although the mood was light, everyone was on edge before the surprise attack. The presence of Japanese envoys in Washington seemed ominous. When enemy periscopes were spotted, the men knew something was going on. Clay ponders if the military was sold out. When his ship was being towed around to draw the Japanese fleet down, it angered him [Annotator's Note: this occurred during operations in the South Pacific after Pearl Harbor]. He resented having to sacrifice his life for that. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, everything changed. He felt hatred for the Axis countries. Italy and Mussolini [Annotator's Note: Italian dictator Benito Mussolini] were included. The Russians were included in that group because their allegiance was not obvious. The future of the free world was in doubt. A similar situation exists today. Clay is not pleased with the current government actions. Terrorism is a significant threat to the safety of the world.

At Pearl Harbor, Russell Clay's battle station was on the 1.1 inch pom-pom guns. [Annotator's Note: Clay was a crewman aboard the USS Helena (CL-50) on 7 December 1941. His battle station was on one of the ship's 1.1 inch antiaircraft gun batteries.]. In the South Pacific, Clay worked assisting the Pharmacists Mates in the officers' stateroom. People were killed by the explosion of Japanese ordnance and the resulting shrapnel that hit the ship's smoke stack in the latter actions. One man from Kansas named Gage [Annotator's Note: no given name provided, spelling of surname not confirmed] was lightly wounded and making quite a fuss while being treated. Clay told him to look at a man nearby who was dying and realize he did not have it so bad. Gage would not take a look at the fatally wounded shipmate. Clay remembers names and events across his boot camp and combat such as the incident with Gage. One individual, Terrence Dempsey from New Jersey, started the reunion committee for the Helena in 1953, ten years after the ship's loss. Dempsey was in another company on the ship. He was a Carpenters Mate. Clay vividly remembered incidents with Dempsey years after his discharge. The same was true for a Storekeeper named Aubrey J. Valentine from Texas. He was hit by a life raft while in the water [Annotator's Note: following the sinking of the USS Helena (CL-50) in 1943]. Valentine's back was severely injured as a result. He would later serve on the Houston [Annotator's Note: USS Houston (CL-81)] with Clay. Clay liked his Navy buddies and stayed in touch with them after the war.

Russell Clay always served below deck during engagements with the enemy [Annotator's Note: he was a crewman aboard the USS Helena (CL-50) and the USS Houston (CL-81)]. Very few individuals operated above deck while the ship was under fire. There were the numerous below deck activities required to support the ship during those actions. When he did go above deck afterward, he could observe the damage that the ship suffered. Shell hits were only felt in the immediate proximity of the strike. Four ships were sunk during the Japanese surface engagement near Savo Islands. The Japanese torpedoes were more effective compared to the American version at the time. The Helena received a Unit Citation for sinking two enemy ships during the Guadalcanal naval engagements in October 1942. She sank a large amount of enemy tonnage and downed many Japanese aircraft. Before the change to 40mm guns, a man was killed on a 1.1 inch antiaircraft gun similar to the one Clay supported. The gun jammed and the crewman was killed. He was buried at sea. That was a difficult thing to observe. Clay visited three local families of men lost in action. He was asked by his commanding officer to do so. Clay is a Christian. It gave him strength in combat and while in the water after the Helena went down. He was strengthened by the knowledge that he was doing his duty because he loved his country.

Russell Clay found that his wartime experience as a barber in the Navy meant little in transitioning to civilian barber school. He was disturbed by the insufficient government aid he received in purchasing his first home. It did help a little. The large subsidies given to Japanese internees bothered him when he compared that with what he was given for his combat service. Clay went to barber school on the G.I. Bill. It angered Clay that he spent five years barbering in the Navy and had to subsequently be educated on how to cut hair following his discharge. He eventually got his own barber business. He later transitioned into apartment management. He has struggled through the years and made a livelihood the best he could. He had a good family and life as a result. The Navy suffered many casualties during the war but the Army and Marines suffered more extensively in Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Korea, and Vietnam. He knows that World War 2 included Germany and the Holocaust. The war and its remembrance mean little to the younger generation. Clay likes to visit with his former shipmates.