{"id":275536,"date":"2024-09-11T18:06:31","date_gmt":"2024-09-11T18:06:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=275536"},"modified":"2024-09-11T19:17:45","modified_gmt":"2024-09-11T19:17:45","slug":"pearl-harbor-sailor-from-uss-california-laid-to-rest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=275536","title":{"rendered":"Pearl Harbor Sailor from USS California Laid to Rest"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Cheryle Stone did not even know she had a second cousin\u2014much less one who had been killed at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941\u2014until the U.S. Navy contacted her in 2021, asking for a DNA sample. The sample matched, and Stone was suddenly connected to history.<\/p>\n

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A Black sailor serving in a segregated Navy, 19-year-old David Walker was a mess attendant 3rd class aboard the battleship USS California when the Japanese attacked. Two torpedoes breached the ship\u2019s hull, forcing it to tilt as it filled with water. Enemy bombs then began exploding on the deck. When the attack ended, 102 crewmembers had been killed, including Walker.<\/p>\n

In the weeks and months after the attack, the remains of 42 unidentified sailors and Marines were removed from the ship and buried at the Halawa Naval Cemetery in Hawaii. In 2018, the Department of Defense POW\/MIA Accounting Agency exhumed the unknown graves related to the California to identify them through DNA testing. That was how Stone learned she had a cousin.<\/p>\n

Stone\u2019s mother died when she was five, and she and her sister were sent to live with a member of their church; her brother went to another family. Stone knew almost nothing about her mother\u2019s family. \u201cThe only thing I heard was that we had a family member who died,\u201d Stone said. \u201cNo one said \u2018died at Pearl Harbor.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Stone initially did not respond to letters and calls from the Navy. It was not until her nephew read one of the letters that he convinced her to respond. In January 2024, two Navy chiefs visited Stone and showed her materials relating to her cousin, including a letter from her aunt dated Dec. 29, 1941, asking the Navy about her son. There were no response letters. \u201cI could feel her pain,\u201d said Stone.<\/p>\n

Stone chose to have her cousin\u2019s remains buried at Arlington National Cemetery. \u201cHe deserved the honor of being at Arlington,\u201d she said. \u201cHe put in his service just like the others who are buried here.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Sept. 6, 2024, Stone and about 20 family members and friends gathered in Section 62 for Seaman Walker\u2019s funeral. U.S. Navy Chaplain (Lt.) Jennifer Miles, who oversaw the ceremony, told the group, \u201cToday, Mess Attendant 3rd Class David Walker takes his rightful place here on these hallowed grounds.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rear Adm. Mike Brown, with the office of the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Information Warfare, presented the tightly folded flag to Stone. After the service, Brown spoke about the importance of remembering Seaman Walker. \u201cIt\u2019s meaningful for his family to see him get the recognition he deserves as a sailor in the U.S. Navy,\u201d Brown said, \u201cand I think it\u2019s important, as a Navy, to own our past and recognize African American sailors who served in 1941 in very specific jobs in our segregated service. We\u2019ve come a long way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stone concluded the service for her cousin by reading from Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 and leading everyone in a prayer. When she finished, she pronounced, \u201cAunt Edna, your baby boy is home and he\u2019s being laid to rest.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cheryle Stone did not even know she had a second cousin\u2014much less one who had been killed at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941\u2014until the U.S. Navy contacted her in 2021, asking for a DNA sample. The sample matched, and Stone was suddenly connected to history. #cboxClose { position: absolute; top: 5px; right: 5px; display: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":275538,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-275536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=275536"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275536\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":275539,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275536\/revisions\/275539"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/275538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=275536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=275536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=275536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}