Stanley Wolczyk was born in Cleveland, Ohio in December 1917. His father and mother were both Polish immigrants. They had six children. Wolczyk was educated in classrooms with multiple language students attempting to learn English. His teacher had to deal with ten different languages. He would eventually obtain a master's degree using the GI Bill. He became a teacher and a principal. Wolczyk gives credit to his teachers who helped him learn English. His mother never learned any skills so she worked in restaurants where Polish was spoken. His father worked for General Motors building wooden frames for automobiles. Eventually, his father retired from General Motors. Wolczyk joined the CCC camps, Civilian Conservation Corps, because he could not find a job. Earning six dollars per month, he helped pay the family expenses. While in Indianapolis, Indiana, he came into contact with the CMTC, Civilian Military Training Camps. He decided to go back to school so he could get a job that used his brain rather than one that used his back like he did in the CCC. In the CMTC, Wolczyk discovered that there was reserve officer military training, especially in shooting. After four years in the CMTC, he joined the reserves and went to school to become a second lieutenant. Following Pearl Harbor, he was called up for active duty. He had been working as a machinist building aircraft valves. Following the call up, Wolczyk trained with the M1 rifle [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 rifle, also referred to as the M1 Garand] and in infantry tactics at Fort Benning, Georgia. He also trained at several other locations including, at one point, training in the desert with General George Patton as part of a mechanized infantry unit. Wolczyk was assigned to the 7th Infantry Division but when Patton went to Africa, Wolczyk continued to train stateside. The training was not a bad experience. When he was called to active duty, Wolczyk had relatives living in Poland under the rule of the Germans. It was only later that he learned of their violent experiences with the Nazis.

As Stanley Wolczyk departed the United States, he had no idea of his destination. The troops thought that they were headed to Africa, but they were issued winter weather gear. Two days out of San Francisco, they were told that they would relieve troops on Attu and Kiska [Annotator's Note: two islands in the Aleutian Island chain]. They were shown the islands on a scale model relief map. While en route, the Swedish ship they were aboard developed mechanical problems and dropped out of the convoy with only a Canadian ship escorting it. After the engine was repaired, their ship continued on to Cold Harbor, Alaska. At Cold Harbor, there was additional field training. This was beneficial as it accustomed the troops to the winter climate, including the foggy conditions. The men also learned to use the weather to their advantage.

The assault of Attu went well as Stanley Wolczyk landed at Massacre Bay. It was unopposed on the beach. They went over the side of their ship using cargo nets to climb down into the landing crafts. The first two attempts at a run on the beach were cancelled so a third attempt was given the go ahead and that one succeeded. The Japanese had taken up positions on the high ground off the beaches. The Americans were given the order to take that high ground. The terrain and weather were terrible. It was not a good position to be in with the enemy looking down on them from above. Digging foxholes was difficult because of the rocky surface. In addition, the holes would fill with water making them useless. Troops could move when it was foggy, but had to be set by the time the fog lifted. The troops were cold and wet because of the lack of adequate winter gear. Some of the troops did have proper gear. If one of the soldiers with proper winter gear was fatally wounded, other troops would take the gear from the body since it was no longer of use to the dead soldier. Once, Wolczyk removed his wet boots and socks but immediately felt his feet swelling. He quickly put his footwear back on for fear that the swelling would prevent him from doing so later. Frostbite was a real problem on Attu. The food supply to the troops started off better than it later turned into. The supply of hot food eventually became a supply of K rations which were prepackaged food packets about the size of a Cracker Jack box. When paper labels detached from cans of food, the troops no longer knew what was inside. When they brought canned food back to the line, if it was not fruit, it was often just dumped out. Wolczyk noted a fair amount of food wastage. Getting ammunition through the supply system was often a chore as well. Most troops carried extra ammo for the mortars and machine guns. Few resupply missions came from the rear. Vehicles were scarce so most of the lugging of gear and supplies was manual. Fire support came from the air but it resulted in friendly fire casualties so it was not that effective or desired. Likewise, there was little in the way of offshore Navy fire missions to support the troops.

Stanley Wolczyk was under fire three times during the campaign to recapture Attu from the Japanese. It was during the course of the third firefight that he was wounded. Before being wounded, he came to the aid of a mortally wounded infantryman. The wounded man only had a short time to live when Wolczyk encountered him. The best aid that he could offer was to hold the man's hand so that he would not die alone. [Annotator's Note: Wolczyk is emotional while referring to this incident.] After the man expired, Wolczyk moved forward. A firefight started with an enemy soldier. During the exchange of fire, Wolczyk was hit in the left shoulder. The round continued toward his spine and ultimately ended up in his throat. Wolczyk later found out that he swallowed the spent round. After regaining consciousness, Wolczyk felt the cold. It was snowing, but the cold feeling made him feel that he was dying. He slowly began to warm up, but he realized that was due to the blood that was flowing out of his wound. In despair, he felt he was dying. The feeling would return to him again later when he tried to remove his pack. He wanted to get the sulfa pills [Annotator's Note: Sulfonamide was an antibiotic issued to troops to swallow or spread on wounds to prevent infection] out to help with his wound. Wolczyk found that he could not use his left arm. Again, he felt despair and that he might die. Two soldiers came his way and provided him with the sulfa pills. When Wolczyk could not swallow the pills, he felt the despair come over him once again. The two soldiers carried him to a medical aid station. It was determined at the station that he needed to be evacuated because of the severity of his wounds. He was transferred to the beach using a sled to transport him. He was cold, wet, wounded, and miserable. It was determined that he should be sent back to the United States for treatment. Wolczyk was sent to San Francisco for treatment on a hospital ship.

Stanley Wolczyk knew that the Japanese soldiers he encountered [Annotator's Note: during the Battle of Attu] were doing their duty just as he was. They were good soldiers. Wolczyk returned to the United States. His recovery from the wounds he sustained on Attu took over a year. Ultimately, because of the severity of his wounds, he was deemed unfit for further service as an infantryman. He was separated from service at that point. Looking back at his prewar military training, he fired the 03 rifle [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1903 Springfield bolt action rifle] and the .45 caliber pistol [Annotator's Note: .45 caliber M1911 semiautomatic pistol]. While in the Army, Wolczyk was issued a carbine [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 carbine] which he exchanged for an M1 [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 rifle, also referred to as the M1 Garand]. The M1 was his preferred rifle since it was only slightly less accurate than the 03 but had greater firepower with its semiautomatic action. After leaving the service, Wolczyk returned to college on the GI Bill. It enabled him to graduate and become a teacher. The war and the GI Bill allowed Wolczyk to have an enjoyable career afterwards. The United States' involvement in the Second World War was important. The invasion of Attu was questionable except that the American people needed a win and taking the island back from the Japanese represented that. Most Americans do not know that the war was fought there and that it was on the North American continent. Wolczyk had no idea where Attu was when he was told that he was destined for that invasion site. He was apprehensive about assaulting Massacre Bay because of its name. The National WWII Museum is needed to remind people that war is hell and wasteful. It should be required for high school students to attend so they can see that war hurts too many people.