One Sunday in December, John Holbrook was sitting in the living room with his family listening to a Packer game on the radio when the broadcast was interrupted by President Roosevelt announcing that Pearl Harbor had just been bombed. When they lowered the draft age six months later, John saw the writing on the wall, and rather than wait to be drafted and face being a foot soldier, he set out to enlist in the Army Air Corps Aviation Cadet program in hope of being a pilot. After learning that he was going to be a gunner instead of a pilot, John determined that the next move would be his. When he wasn't at shooting practice and learning survival skills, John and his buddies schemed together to find a way to get the same shipping orders. Once overseas, John was assigned to be a tail gunner on a ten-man crew with the Don C. Woods crew aboard a B-17. As part of the 817th Squadron of the 483rd Bomb group, John concentrated on staying alive, cutting excerpts from the Stars and Stripes and keeping a journal of his missions. Once back in the states he retrained for another assignment while keeping his fingers crossed that the war in Europe would be over before he was shipped out once again.