Monday, May 27, 2013

It was Septemeber 13, 1944 on the USS Warrington

A few years back before my mom passed away.... we all went
to New York to see my daughter perform at Carnegie Hall.  We also had somewhere else to visit that was long over do.
We took my mom to Battery Park to see the memorial for the soilders that drowned and who were never recovered in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean during WWII.

Two days out of Norfolk, along the Florida coast, a navy destroyer named the USS Warrington  received word that she was steaming directly into a hurricane. Later that evening, the storm forced the destroyer to heave. Keeping wind and sea on her port bow, Warrington rode relatively well through most of the night. Wind and seas, however, continued to build during the early morning hours of September 13th 1944. Warrington began to lose headway and, as a result, started to ship water through the vents to her engineering spaces.

The water rushing into her vents caused a loss of electrical power which set off a chain reaction. Her main engines lost power, and her steering engine and mechanism went out. She wallowed there in the trough of the swells, continuing to ship water. She regained headway briefly and turned upwind, while her radiomen desperately, but fruitlessly, tried to contact another nearby vessel. Finally, she resorted to a plain-language distress call to any ship or shore station. By noon on the 13th, it was apparent that Warrington's crewmen could not win the struggle to save their ship, and the order went out to prepare to abandon ship. By 12:50, her crew had left Warrington; and she went down almost immediately. A prolonged search by 10 other vessels rescued only five officers and 68 men of the destroyer's 20 officers and 301 men.

My mother's brother...Chief Storekeeper USNR Edward John Labuda was one of the men lost at sea.  He had just been home on leave prior to returning to duty.
 
The memorial says....
 
My mother looking at her brother's name engraved in stone for the first time.
 
La Buda Edward J.
 
His name on the wall faces the Statue of Liberty and
 
.....Ellis Island.  The same port where his father entered the United States as an immigrant years before.

Thank you to all of those that made the ultimate sacrifice.  You're forever in our debt and hearts.  Indeed...in to thy hands, O Lord.


Thursday, May 23, 2013

A Moment With The Sisters

 
I think nuns are fascinating.  Maybe it's because we live in an age of materialism and how does one give up everything?  I came across this video on You Tube and it gives us a peek of the sisters experiencing the same thing we all did....a few months back.  Watching them brought back wonderful memories of that day.
 
 


Saturday, May 11, 2013

Mother's, St. Augustine

 
There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think of my mom.  My sister said.... that her passing was even harder because we had lost our first love.  Since my mom's passing.... I've been on a journey to know God and my faith. 
My parish priest suggested... that my mom....after her passing.... had something to do in prompting me to start this journey.  God certainly calls us to Him in many different ways.  To those of you that have your mom still...cherish your times with her and respect her.  For those of you that don't have your mom...know that she's still with you. 
 
 
Our Catholic faith gives us many role models of great mother's.  There's no other greater mother than the Mother of God. Since my mom has passed away... I have clung to Our Lady and my relationship with her has flourished.   
Another role model is St. Gianna.  St. Gianna was diagnosed with cancer and was urged to abort her baby so she could receive treatments.  She refused to give up her baby.  A few days after giving birth...Gianna passed away.   
I can't forget about St. Monica.  Her son Augustine was always in her prayers.  He lived a life that was contradictory to a Christian.  Through her perseverance in praying...he found God and became a doctor of the Catholic Church!  We refer to him as St. Augustine.
Below is a you tube movie of his life and the role his mother (St. Monica) played in it.  It's a 2 part movie and it gets a thumbs up from me.
 
 
Another favorite mother of mine is Mother Angelica.  She's the foundress of the Eternal Word Television Network.  She has helped to bring many Catholics back to the faith.  She has helped to bring many from different denominations to Catholicism.  She has helped to bring atheists to Catholicism.
Lastly, the greatest gift I have ever received were my children.  I miscarried a child many years ago.  When my time here is over... I look forward to holding her in heaven.
Happy Mother's Day.