Is there a lighter side to war? Ask these veterans on Nov. 4

War is hell and stories veterans can tell, if they tell you at all, can be hair-raising, spine-chilling tales of heroism in the heat of battle.

But the horrors of war isn’t what a new event being planned by Manatee JcCongress founder Bill “Willy” Orry is about. There is another side to war. The camaraderie, the brotherhood, the lifelong friends and, yes, the funny times they shared.

That brighter side of war is what some World War II veterans will focus on at the first “Lunch with a Vet” event at Popi’s Restaurant in Ellenton from 1-3 p.m. Saturday.

World War II saw more than 16 million Americans involved in some capacity of service and there are only about a half million of those veterans left to tell the history of America’s Greatest Generation who overcame both the Great Depression and global war.

Their stories are literally fading into history. The surviving World War II veteran population is expected to dwindle to less than 25,000 over the next decade. Orry has two veterans who will speak and possibly more.

“I wanted to do World War II veterans first,” Orry said. “A lot of those guys are dying and those guys are something special. The things they lived through, they are different kind of heroes and were asked to do a lot with nothing. I listen to some of their stories and I can’t believe they made it through it, but they also made great friends for life and it’s a hoot to listen to those stories they shared together.”

Orry started his new civic organization JcCongress in March of this year, in the spirit of the Jaycees, or United States Junior Chamber. Orry’s organization has been fundraising over the past several months and those funds will be used to pay for the veterans’ meals during what Orry hopes will become a monthly event.

The event is for the public, but attendees must purchase their own meals.

“This is our first event and we are looking forward to making it a fun event,” Orry said. “We all know there are bad stories in war, but this is about the good stories they have about friends and funny experiences. There are a lot of great stories here.”

And a lot of history. Orry hopes one planned speaker’s health holds for the event. The veteran served on the USS Indianapolis, which was sunk by a Japanese submarine on July 30, 1945. The heavy cruiser went down in less than 12 minutes, but most of the sailors initially survived. Only 316 would return home, however, after most of them died from days in the water and one of the most harrowing tales of shark attacks ever told.

The wreckage of the Indianapolis was discovered in August.

This story was originally published November 1, 2017 at 2:31 PM with the headline "Is there a lighter side to war? Ask these veterans on Nov. 4."