textallenrichardwayne1953.html

North High School Wall of Honor
Richard Wayne Allen
Class of June, 1953

Research done by Claradell Shedd, class of 1953.

Richard Wayne Allen

Dick graduated in the North High class of June, 1953. In May, 1954, enlisted in Des Moines at age 18. At the time of his enlistment, his next of kin was Mr. and Mrs. R.E. Allen, 1916 22nd Street, Des Moines, IA. His service number was 1463587.

Richard Wayne Allen

Year		Rank		Status

June, 1953	x	Graduated	x	North Des Moines High School.
May 21, 1954	x	USMC/Enlisted	x	Enlisted at 18 years old. Des Moines, IA.
May 25, 1954	x	US Marines	x	Recruit Training at the *Marine Corps Recruit Depot (USMCRD), San Diego, CA and at Camp Pendleton, CA
December, 1954	x	Enroute	x	Shipped out from California to Osaka, Japan and then to Camp Nara, Japan where I joined the 4th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division
1955	x	Stationed	x	Transferred, (temporary duty) to Korea, with a contingent of men rotating back to the US with the 1st Marine Division which was leaving Korea. Our group was to handle the radio nets while the 1st Marine Division prepared and then departed. After the 1st Marine Division departed our group, returned to Camp Nara, Japan and the 4th Marine Regiment where I was assigned to **D Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment..
1955	x	Stationed	x	Transferred with the entire 4th Marine Regiment to ***Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, Territory of Hawaii. Here the 4th Marine Regiment and the Marine Air Wing already here were merged together to become the 1st Marine Brigade. (There is a story and a reason for the 4th Marine Regiment being transferred to the Territory of Hawaii.)
March 6, 1956	x	Training	x	Field Radio Operator Course, 4th Marines (Reinf.)
October 8, 1956	x	Stationed	x	Transferred from USMCAS Kaneohe Bay to Treasure Island, San Francisco.
October 9, 1956	x	Enroute/CPO	x	USNS General C.G. Morton (TAP-138) to Fort Mason, San Francisco, CA
November 19, 1956	x	Stationed/CPL	x	Transferred to Camp Pendleton, CA to 1st Marine Division, Game Warden Department, MP Company (Military Police Battalion).
May 20, 1957	x	US Marine Corps/ Sgt/E4	x	Discharged as Sgt, USMC
August 12, 1977	x	Family	x	Married Mary Marie Lewis
October 28, 1957	x	Employment	x	Employed as Fireman, Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific RR (also known as the CRI&P, or Rock Island RR).
May 20, 1962	x	Discharged/ SGT/E4	x	Discharged USMC Reserves
April 2, 1963	x	Employment	x	Promoted to Locomotive Engineer. Worked on the Western Division between Des Moines and Omaha
1966	x	Employment	x	Became local union representative for the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen which later joined with the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen and the Switchmen's Union of North America to become the United Transportation Union.
1970	x	Employment	x	Became Vice General Chairman for the BLF&E (later the UTU).
1980	x	Employment	x	Seeing that the Rock Island was going to go under, Mary and I (both of us worked for the Rock Island) took some vacation time, packed a few clothes, and together with another couple, Howard and Ann Buck, who are family to us, headed south to see if any other railroads were hiring. We got no further than Oklahoma City and found that the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad was hiring. They were desperately short of engineers, and two candidates wandered into their clutches.
March 26, 1980	x	Employment	x	Three days after leaving Des Moines, we were under pay and in training to learn the road on the Santa Fe. We were given seniority dates of March 26, 1980, toh as engineer and fireman. I worked the territory between Arkansas City, KS and Gainesville, TX. We moved to Oklahoma City in 1983. I spent the last few years working a yard engine at Oklahoma City so that I would be at home more.
November 30, 1995	x	Employment	x	Retired. This was two years early and cost me a little bit on my pension, but it was worth it.
Present	x	Retirement	x	I find that as I get older, I have less and less free time. Coping with raising two granddaughters takes most of it. Sometimes I believe that God is testing me, and I question if He even expects me to pass, but He has been very good to us. Any free time I have I spend making Christmas cards for the next Christmas. Right now I am involved in writing a history for my granddaughters. This is not about me much, but rather how the world was when I came in, how it has changed in my lifetime, and how the ethics and values have changed. For instance, how the elected congressmen in Washington had better pray that the founding fathers never find a way to come back. They would start a new revolution in Washington, gather up all of those congressmen, put red coats on them, and ship them back to England. Enough of that!

* San Diego and Camp Pendleton, CA
United States Marine Corps Recruit Training, commonly known as "boot camp", is a 13 week program of initial training that each recruit must successfully complete in order to join the United States Marine Corps. All enlisted individuals entering the Marine Corps, regardless of eventual active or reserve duty status, will undergo recruit training at one of the two Marine Corps Recruit Depots (MCRD): Parris Island, South Carolina, or San Diego, California. Male recruits from the 8th, 9th and 12th recruiting districts (predominantly areas west of the Mississippi River) are sent to MCRD San Diego.
**2nd Battalion, 4th Marines
The battalion was reactivated on 2 September 1952 for the Korean War; however, they did not see action because of the end of hostilities. The battalion arrived in Japan as part of the Fourth Marines on 24 August 1953 and was assigned the mission of defending southern Japan. To maintain its combat readiness the battalion trained in amphibious operations on Iwo Jima and Okinawa. The Fourth Marine Regiment was transferred to Hawaii in 1953 and here the battalion became part of the First Marine Brigade. The battalion then settled down for a ten year tour of duty.
***Kanoehe Bay, Oahu
Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH) Kaneohe Bay is located on the windward side of Oahu, approximately 12 miles northeast of Honolulu. The base occupies the Mokapu Peninsula which connects to the mainland near the cities of Kaneohe and Kailua. At MCBH Kaneohe bay, the headquarters provides administrative, housing, legal, logistical, morale and recreational support services. MCBH Kaneohe Bay is home to III Marine Expeditionary Forces, Hawaii, 1st Radio Battalion, and the Marine Corps Air Facility, Kaneohe Bay. The base's position in the Pacific makes it an ideal location for strategic deployment to the Far East. The base is also a leader in environmental protection, enhancement and conservation. The base has received numerous awards for its efforts, including the 1984 Secretary of Defense Environmental Quality Award and the 1992 Secretary of the Navy Natural Resources Conservation Award.


U.S. Marine Corps Certificate of Service

		left above: Training at Camp Pendleton; Nara, Japan left below: Kaneohe Bay, Oahu; Aerial of Kanoehe Bay right below: Treasure Island, San Francisco, CA


4.2 mortars; Hill 806; 1955	Kaneohe Bay, HI


Rock Island RR/1956	Santa Fe RR/late 1950's


Sacred Heart 3rd Grade Soccer/ Granddaughter Kayla (arrow) Coached: Marie & Dick; 1999	With granddaughter Kayla on Santa Fe engine; 1995

"	Robert Wayne Allen U.S. Marine Corps/Sgt/E4 4th Marine Regiment 3rd Marine Division
National Defense Service Medal; Korean Service Medal; Korean Defense Servicxe Medal; Naval/Marine Unit Citation; Distinguished Unit Citation; Presidential Unit Citation/Korea; Korean Service Medal; United Nations Service Medal/Korea; Marine Presidential Unit Citation; Good Conduct Medal

References

The comprehensive list of names from North High's 1893-2019 graduation classes are from Claradell Shedd's North Des Moines High School website. The names of North High School graduates can be found online at: http://www.ndmhs.com/. Richard Wayne Allen's class page is: http://www.ndmhs.com/pages/invite.html.

01/05/11: Presently living in OK.

Music: "Semper Fidelis"