A Ring of True Friendship
Glade man finds Marine buddy to return ring after 50 years
Special to The Vista
The following letter was written by Jerry Turner who is a retired Marine and resident of Fairfield Glade, Tennessee.
The relevance of the story is that it has just been published in the June 2016 edition of the Leatherneck Magazine, Magazine of the Marines.
The Leatherneck Magazine is a publication of the Marine Corps Association & Foundation with a circulation worldwide.
Today, Jerry serves our community with the Fairfield Glade Fire Department and is the man who provides all the green reflective address signs on every mail box in Fairfield Glade which assists Emergency Services Personnel locate addresses in time of emergency.
Here is the article with all due credit to Leatherneck Magazine, Magazine of the Marines:
“I joined the Marine Corps in 1959. In 1960 while on Okinawa, I was sent TAD (temporary attached duty) to Camp Sukiran. Because I had some background as a swimmer, I was assigned to the Olympic pool at Camp Sukiran to train Marines in combat water survival techniques. It was there that I met Howard “Joe” Collins and we became fast friends and drinking buddies.
“Joe had a beautiful Marine ring. It was gold, had the Marine emblem on its face, the image of Tun Tavern on one side and the Iwo Jima flag raising on the other. Each month as our funds got slimmer and slimmer, Joe would pawn the ring and maybe get $8 to $10 for it.
“Every payday Joe and I would get the ring back from the pawn shop. At some point Joe was sent to a new duty station and was not able to get the ring out, so he gave me the ticket and told me to get it and get it back to him if and when we ever connected.
“Being a good Marine and good friend of Joe’s, I did exactly as I was directed and got the ring out of pawn the very next payday. To be sure I didn’t lose the ring, I put it on my finger and began the process of trying to find Joe.
“This turned out to be a lot more difficult than expected.
“For years I tried everything I could but was never able to find him. As years were passing I began to wonder if Joe was even alive. I just assumed I would never find him. Then, a few months ago, as I was flipping through the pages of Leatherneck [July 2015], I looked down, and there was a picture of Joe and his two buddies from their mortar crew in Korea!
“I called Leatherneck, and they passed my contact info on to Joe, and within an hour, I received a call from him. We spent the next two hours having the most unbelievable time catching up.
“I kept offering a plan to get the ring back to him, but he would have none of it. “Jerry,” he said, “you’ve worn this ring for more than 50 years! That’s your ring now, buddy. I want you to continue to wear it proudly and in continued good health.”
“Joe and I hadn’t spoken in more than 60 years, and as soon as we heard each other’s voices, it just as easily could have been yesterday that we were young Marines trying to figure out how to make it to the next payday.
“Take it from this old Marine, still proud as hell, I wear Joe’s ring every day and plan to have it on when they put me in the box.”
Jerry Turner
Fairfield Glade, Tenn.