Bill Balabanow, WWII

Bill Balabanow grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, during the Great Depression. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, he tried to enlist in the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps, but each branch of service rejected him because of a curvature of the spine.. Undeterred, he joined the U.S. Merchant Marine in February 1944. He underwent training at Sheepshead Bay, New York, followed by six months at radio officers’ school, preparing him for his role as a radio officer. Balabanow’s wartime service involved critical supply missions to Europe. His first assignment took him–seasick the whole way–to Marseille, France, where he witnessed the extensive destruction wrought by the conflict. His ship transported essential military supplies to Allied forces and returned to the United States with damaged equipment for repair and reuse. He also participated in voyages through the Panama Canal to the Philippines, contributing to the Pacific theater operations.

After World War II,…