Schab was just 21 when he was stationed at Pearl Harbor. Assigned to the USS Dobbin, he played the tuba as part of the ship’s band. When Schab saw the planes overhead and saw the bombs dropping, he prayed that the Dobbin would not be hit. His prayers were answered, and Schab helped feed ammunition to machine gunners on the vessel.
Shore leave in Shanghai. Perhaps 1945? When he was stationed on the USS Helena. Pop is the one making a goofy face in back. Shocking. I wonder about all these folks and whether any are still with us. #Ike2Pearl80th #Ike101 pic.twitter.com/FgyGUJi1ht
— Pearl Harbor Survivor Ike Schab (@Ike2Pearl) December 2, 2021
“I’m not worthy. Who’s worth all this?” Schab said, holding back tears as he remembered his friends and many others who lost their lives that day.
“Those are the ones I want to salute,” he said.
Schab said he’ll keep coming back for those who can no longer be here.
“I wouldn’t have missed it,” he said. “You could have gotten me here in a hospital bed.”
At the events @PearlHarborNPS pic.twitter.com/puLG4tmFrZ
— Pearl Harbor Survivor Ike Schab (@Ike2Pearl) December 7, 2022
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