Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is James Lair.
James enlisted in the Navy, as he’d tell you, “when war was declared” and separated “when the war was over.”
He sailed aboard the USS Charles Carroll, and crewed Higgins Boats, ferrying assault troops to the beaches of North Africa, Sicily, and Normandy.
On June 6, 1944, James’ boat was among the first to hit Omaha Beach. His crew took two more round trips before the end of the day.
James is now 96-years-old and recently had the opportunity to visit the memorials in Washington D.C. with the West Central Florida Honor Flight.
Thank you for your service, James.
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Mr. Lair obviously served in the USCG, not the Navy. USCG coxswains ferried many of the Higgins boats ashore at Normandy and in the Pacific. Although the Coast Guard was made a branch of the Navy Department by executive order on November 1, 1941, it remained a separate service and reverted back to Treasury Department control at the end of WW II.