ages of 18 and 28 were required to register. My brothers, both registered. At 16 I had to wait. The government classified everyone by their health and skills. Some men had jobs the government felt required their presence at home. My brother Izzy fit this category. He was making tanks at the Ford factory. Harry, on the other hand, was rated 4F and deferred for health reasons. He stayed and helped my father. I felt strongly that one of us should represent the Shooster family in the Armed Forces. So, on the day I turned 18, Novem- ber 29, 1942, I registered for the draft and was classified 1-A, able to serve. Just because I was registered and able did not mean I was drafted. Upon high school graduation, I started college in the fall of that year. My declared major was business admin- istration. I did not have the luxury of going home to study after a full day of college. Practi- cally every off hour you could find me at work, many times ‘til late in the night. Looking back, I think those hours made my grades suffer. Meanwhile, the draft selection continued randomly. Months passed without my activa- tion. I gave up waiting on June 5th, 1943 and volunteered. I knew the decision would break my parent’s hearts. I’m sure it did, but I felt that I had to do it. In the middle of June, I gathered with a large group of young men at the Chester train station. After teary goodbyes, we boarded a troop train headed to Indiantown Gap, Penn- sylvania. I was officially inducted on June 19th, 1943. In the process, I was given health exams, intelligence tests, and an army uniform. With the rest of the inductees, we were solemnly sworn into the US Army. My rank was Buck Private, serial number 33-784-220. The first task I was given in the army wasn’t exactly what I had in mind; digging a swimming pool for the officers. The hazing didn’t last long. Within a few weeks, I was sent to Camp Grant, 100 miles north of Chicago, to begin basic training. That was July of 1943. Training was tough, thirteen weeks of brutal exercise and drilling. I was issued a 65-pound backpack, and a carbine rifle. I was taught everything about it. I could take my rifle apart and put it back together again in seconds.
Herman Shooster during 6-day pass, Chester, Pa.
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