Cassie Cox
Hickory Creek is pleased to be the home to World War II Veteran Warren Peele. He will be celebrating Veterans’ Day with the other residents of Hickory Creek with a visit from the American Legion.
Warren Peele, who goes by “Ike” at the assisted living facility, was in the 40th Division of the 85th Infantry Regiment of the Army. The 40th Division was mainly compiled from California, with a select number of men such as Peele from other states. He went through basic training in Hawaii. He fought in the South Pacific battle. He spent most of his time in the Phillipines. Seventeen men were killed from his company when fighting in the Phillipines. Peele and his fellow company often visited the capital, Manila. The culture introduced them to several water buffalo and rice paddies.
After the Phillipines, Peele went to Korea, New Guinea and Guadacanal.
“Boats were the only way to travel back then, but I didn’t get seasick. We took a passenger boat that had probably 15,000 men onboard. We were in a convoy surrounded by 40 other ships and destroyers,” Peele described.
The war ended a couple months before he was able to return home. Peele dedicated 40 months of his life to the Army overseas. He tried keeping in touch with the friends he made during the war, but most of them have long since passed, he said. His family consisted of four brothers, and all five of them made it out of the war “just fine,” he added.
Peele does not feel as though Veterans get enough recognition, even on Veterans’ Day, but he is not at all upset about it.
He has been a resident at Hickory Creek for about 15 or 16 months and is their President of the Resident Council.
