"I had turned 6 on Dec. 5, 1941, a birthday celebration long lost to my memory," wrote Slice reader Meg McCoy.

"What I do remember is my mother and father listening to the radio on that Sunday when the attack was announced. My mother was crying and my father, a WWI veteran, was so angry he could hardly speak. As a 6-year-old, I wasn't able to comprehend the full import of what was to follow. The image imprinted on my memory is my mother crying. It didn't take long however for the unprecedented changes in our lives to be felt.

"My three cousins enlisted in the Army that same week."

   

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