"So I dove in under... this place between the two stacks, and I had about fifteen or twenty people dove in on top of me. I said 'Come on in!'" (Video interview, 2:30)

Arnold Barker, Jr.

Arnold Barker, Jr., being awarded the Presidential Unit Citation [detail from newsclipping] War: World War, 1939-1945; Korean War, 1950-1953 Branch: Navy Unit: USS Hornet Service Location: Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands); Munda Island (New Hebrides Islands); Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Japan Place of Birth: TN

As a boy, Arnold Baker, Jr. always dreamed of joining the Navy. In 1941 he turned 17 and enlisted. He was stationed on the USS Hornet as an aviation mechanic and was onboard when the ship launched the Doolittle Raid against Japan, as well as during the Guadalcanal Campaign. He survived the sinking of the Hornet in October 1942 and went on to serve his country in Korea as well, and retired with twenty years in the service.