Chuck Marshall and I did a Buddy Check on Wednesday, Feb. 11, with our oldest member, Henry Miner, who was 100 on Nov. 19. Henry is in the Loch Raven VA Medical Center and invited us into his room to chat for a while. He told us that he was embarked on the Belgian troopship SS Leopoldville assigned to the 66th Infantry Division (Black Panthers) during WWII. He said he had just finished the evening meal on Christmas Eve 1944 when there was a terrible explosion in the engine room. The ship started taking on water and the captain ordered “All Hands Abandon Ship.” He jumped into the icy waters of the English Channel and was rescued by another ship. 763 members of his division weren’t so lucky and perished in the disaster. The 66th did the mopping-up just after the Battle of the Bulge. After he got discharged from the service he went to work at the Pentagon. Henry was born and raised in Hickory Ridge, Pa., not far from Knoebels Amusement Park. Henry’s eyesight is failing him but otherwise he is sharp as a tack. Both Chuck and I were thrilled to have been able to talk with such an American hero.