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Contact Info
Home Town Muskegon, MI
Last Address In 1992, Don and Tish moved to the Indian River Colony Club in Viera, FL. They moved to Ocala, FL, in 2006 and in 2011, moved to Gainesville and resided at The Village.
Date of Passing Oct 19, 2015
Location of Interment Florida National Cemetery (VA) - Bushnell, Florida
Captain Donald Alfred Dertien, USN (Ret.) Pearl Harbor Survivor, Veteran of WWII, Korea and Vietnam era.
Donald enlisted in the Navy in 1940, and he was commissioned an ensign in 1941 after successfully completing the Navy's "90-day wonder program" on the USS Arkansas (BB-33). He was stationed at Pearl Harbor and was aboard the USS Farragut (DD-348), at the time of the attack. The Farragut was berthed in a nest of destroyers in East Loch, Pearl Harbor, at the time of the Japanese attack on 7 December 1941. He was stationed on the Farragut until 1943 and was then transferred to another destroyer, the USS Halford (DD-480), until the end of the war. During his wartime service, he was awarded 11 battle stars including Guadalcanal, Wake Island, Coral Sea, Marianas Islands Campaign (Navy Commendation Medal) and Leyte Gulf (Bronze Star with Valor). In his quiet and humble manner, he was proud to have served his country at a crucial time in its history and to have been a Pearl Harbor survivor.
The brightest moment during this tumultuous time was when he married Tish on April 6, 1943, at St. James Cathedral in Seattle, WA, with shipmates from the USS Halford as the wedding party. They celebrated their 72nd wedding anniversary this past April.
After the conclusion of WWII, he returned to Muskegon for a short time only to discover that he missed the Navy and re-enlisted shortly thereafter. His Navy career included tours in Rhode Island, California, Washington, D.C., Japan, Korea and the Panama Canal Zone. He also served on the USS Rodman (DMS 21) and USS Helena (CA-75), and was the commanding officer of the USS Cony (DDE-508) during NATO Operation Mariner, USS Luzon (ARG-2) and USS Graffias (AF-29).
In between ship assignments, he earned his Bachelor's and Master's degrees and was the last Superintendent of the U.S Naval Weapons Plant in Washington, D.C. Near the end of his naval career, he was assigned to the Panama Canal Company in the role of Chief of the Navigation Division. The following year he was promoted to Marine Director, responsible for all direct operations of the canal. In December 1968, he retired from the U. S. Navy after more than 28 years of distinguished service attaining the rank of Captain in 1962.
He launched a second career with the Panama Canal Company, first as the Chief of the Executive Planning Staff then serving as the first civilian Marine Director. During this time he served as a technical advisor in the drafting and negotiation of the Panama Canal Treaty. He retired from the Panama Canal Company in 1976.
World War II/Asiatic-Pacific Theater/Guadalcanal Campaign (1942-43)
From Month/Year
August / 1942
To Month/Year
February / 1943
Description The Guadalcanal Campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by Allied forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific theatre of World War II. It was the first major offensive by Allied forces against the Empire of Japan.
On 7 August 1942, Allied forces, predominantly American, landed on the islands of Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and Florida in the southern Solomon Islands with the objective of denying their use by the Japanese to threaten the supply and communication routes between the US, Australia, and New Zealand. The Allies also intended to use Guadalcanal and Tulagi as bases to support a campaign to eventually capture or neutralize the major Japanese base at Rabaul on New Britain. The Allies overwhelmed the outnumbered Japanese defenders, who had occupied the islands since May 1942, and captured Tulagi and Florida, as well as an airfield (later named Henderson Field) that was under construction on Guadalcanal. Powerful US naval forces supported the landings.
Surprised by the Allied offensive, the Japanese made several attempts between August and November 1942 to retake Henderson Field. Three major land battles, seven large naval battles (five nighttime surface actions and two carrier battles), and continual, almost daily aerial battles culminated in the decisive Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in early November 1942, in which the last Japanese attempt to bombard Henderson Field from the sea and land with enough troops to retake it was defeated. In December 1942, the Japanese abandoned further efforts to retake Guadalcanal and evacuated their remaining forces by 7 February 1943 in the face of an offensive by the US Army's XIV Corps, conceding the island to the Allies.
The Guadalcanal campaign was a significant strategic combined arms victory by Allied forces over the Japanese in the Pacific theatre. The Japanese had reached the high-water mark of their conquests in the Pacific, and Guadalcanal marked the transition by the Allies from defensive operations to the strategic offensive in that theatre and the beginning of offensive operations, including the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, and Central Pacific campaigns, that resulted in Japan's eventual surrender and the end of World War II.
My Participation in This Battle or Operation
From Month/Year
January / 1943
To Month/Year
February / 1943
Last Updated: Mar 16, 2020
Personal Memories
Memories During his wartime service, he was awarded 11 battle stars including Guadalcanal, Wake Island, Coral Sea, Marianas Islands Campaign (Navy Commendation Medal) and Leyte Gulf (Bronze Star with Valor). In his quiet and humble manner, he was proud to have served his country at a crucial time in its history and to have been a Pearl Harbor survivor.
