Around Anastasia Island: Local men to receive Congressional Gold Medals
Two Anastasia Island residents — William Pruitt, 105, and Ed Trester, 95, — will be honored for their services in World War II as members of the U.S. Merchant Marines.
Bill Dudley, chairman of the Veterans Council of St. Johns County announced that both men will receive proclamations on Tuesday, June 21, at the St. Johns County Board of County Commission Meeting which starts at 9 a.m. in the St. Johns County Auditorium, 500 San Sebastian View in St. Augustine.
On June 30, the Congressional Gold Medal 2020 will be presented to both men by U.S. Rep. Michael Waltz at the St. Johns County Veterans Council meeting, at the same location. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. Both events are open to the public.
Around Anastasia Island
The job of the Merchant Marines during World War II was to carry vital troops, food, fuel and equipment to wherever needed in the fight against the Axis alliance of Germany, Italy and Japan.
Because the Merchant Marines was not designated as a military branch, its veterans did not receive the G.I. Bill and other benefits given to designated branches of the U.S. military, even though that service recorded one of the highest wartime casualties of other services.
In 2020, Congress passed the Merchant Mariners of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act to recognize the merchant mariners for their courage and contributions during the war. During World War II, nearly 250,000 civilian merchant mariners served as part of the U.S. military and delivered supplies and armed forces personnel by ship to foreign countries engulfed in the war. Between 1939 and 1945, 9,521 merchant mariners lost their lives — a higher proportion than those killed than in any military branch.
The awards are long in coming for the retired and aging mariners.
The first Congressional Gold Medal Bar, one of the highest honors bestowed by the U.S. Congress, was awarded on May 19, 2022, in Washington, D.C.
Each surviving merchant mariner — estimated to number about 12,000 from the World War II years — will receive a bronze replica of the coveted award which is now displayed at the American Merchant Marine Museum in Kings Point, New York.
William (Bill) Pruitt grew up in Attalla, Alabama, and recalled that in his youth he delivered newspapers while riding a pony. After graduating from Etowah High School, he went to work for the U. S. Department of Defense in Birmingham, Alabama, and later entered the U.S. Merchant Marines on Sept. 5, 1942, during World War II. After completing his training at Hoffman Island, N.Y., he served as purser on assigned ships and reached the rank of lieutenant, junior grade.
He came to St. Augustine in 1950 to work with the Military Department of the State of Florida and became a member of the Florida National Guard. Among his local activities, he also served on the advisory board of Flagler College and was active with scholarship fundraising for the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind.
Pruitt obtained the rank of full colonel, U.S. Army, on becoming the United States Property and Fiscal Officer for the State of Florida. He retired on May 31, 1980.
Ed Trester, who has resided in St. Augustine Beach since the early 1980s, recalled his wartime experiences.
He dropped out of high school in 1943 while World War II was raging with the idea of becoming a sailor, but his plan to “join the Navy and see the world” didn’t work.
“The Navy wouldn’t have me. They told me I was too young and to go back to school,” Trester recalled.
Disappointed, he sought another option. He applied, was accepted and soon began training as a merchant marine at Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn, New York. His work as a deckhand during his six years as a merchant marine earned him Atlantic, Mediterranean and Pacific War Zone medals.
Trester, who heads the swing and jazz band “E.T. Swing the Thing” which through the years has performed at local venues on and off the island, is also co-founder of the St. Augustine Jazz Society, a local organization that helps high school students receive music scholarships.
“I am honored and proud to be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal from the Congress of the United States,” Trester said when the award events were announced.
“I feel that this is a belated thank you for our service and I will accept this award in memory of all those merchant seamen who never made it back home,” Trester commented.
Summer concerts
There are two Music by the Sea concerts remaining in part one of the current series with performances by the Paul Lundgren Band on June 22 and Slang performing '80s and '90s pop music on June 29. There will be no performances during the month of July at the St. Augustine Beach Pier and Park Pavilion, however, part two of the series, sponsored by the St. Augustine Beach Civic Association, begins on Aug. 17 with Wednesday concerts scheduled through Sept. 21. Concerts begin at 7 p.m. Bring your own chair or blanket for seating. You can also bring your own food and beverages or purchase them at the event. Local food trucks will be on hand and will offer different menus each week for $10 or less. For updates and information on the series, visit sabca.org.
Plan ahead for the 4th of July fireworks
The City of St. Augustine will host its annual Fireworks Over the Matanzas celebration from 6 to 10 p.m. July 4. The fireworks begin at 9:30 p.m.
The All-Star Orchestra will perform a two-hour show starting at 6 p.m. at the Castillo de San Marcos. The concert will include big band and swing music along with patriotic favorites. Visitors are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating and are welcome to line the streets and sit anywhere along the Bridge of Lions and South Castillo Drive to view the fireworks.
Getting there — and back — will be half the “fun.” There will be many road closings between 8 and 11 p.m. including Aveneda Menendez and South Castillo Drive. The Bridge of Lions will be closed to both boat and vehicle traffic.
However, if you live or are staying on Anastasia Island, there is an alternative. Free park-and-ride shuttles will be available from 6 p.m. until midnight on July 4. The shuttles will run from four island locations to the park on the east side of the Bridge of Lions.
Parking will be free at Anastasia Baptist Church (1650 A1A S.), St. Augustine Amphitheatre (1340-C A1A S.), R.B. Hunt Elementary School (125 Magnolia Drive), and the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park (999 Anastasia Blvd.)
Following the fireworks, the shuttle will pick up passengers at the drop-off location at the east end of the Bridge of Lions. Old Town Trolley Tours and Ripley’s Red Train Tours will provide a dozen buses for the free shuttle service.
For information, go to visitstaugustine.com.
Have news to share about Anastasia Island or the adjoining areas? Send your information about people and events to staugbeachwatch@aol.com or call 904-471-4851.
This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: Around Anastasia Island: Local men to receive Congressional Gold Medals
