Thomas Unger
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Tom Unger was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, and graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1941.

On December 7, 1941, Tom was an 18 year old civilian. During the attack, he rode a truck into Hickam Field (today, Hickam Air Force Base), and with a crew of Red Cross volunteers, assisted doctors and medics in caring for the dead or wounded. He carried buckets of water for doctors' use and assisted rescuing a soldier at a guardhouse when it came under fire.

The following day, Tom joined the Hawaii Territorial Guard; a citizen volunteer group armed to backup the military in the event of an enemy invasion. As a guardsman, he was ferried by boat to Sand Island (in the middle of Honolulu Harbor) where his duty was to care for and guard civilian detainees, enemy aliens and prisoners-of-war.

While stationed at Sand Island and within a couple of weeks after the attack, Tom enlisted in the U.S. Army. He was first assigned to the 811th Military Police Company at Sand Island and assisted in establishing the first prisoner of war camp on American soil since the U.S. Civil War. Tom had an opportunity to guard Ensign Kazuo Sakamaki, the captured midget submarine commander and the first Japanese prisoner-of-war for the United States.

Later in the war, Tom saw combat in three campaigns in Italy, serving as a Sergeant in the 349th Infantry of the 88th "Blue Devil" Division. Before the last and final battle for Italy, he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant.

After the war, Tom went to the University of Portland, Oregon. He also served with the Oregon National Guard until his graduation in 1950. Today, he supports the USS Arizona Memorial by volunteering his time there.