Thomas G. Arminio

Thomas G. Arminio was born in February 1924, in Newark, New Jersey. The eldest of four sons, he was the first of his family to join the military. Like many young American men, high school-aged Arminio was appalled by the destruction of the December 7, 1941 attacks on Pearl Harbor. After graduating from high school, he joined the Navy at 18, rather than follow his original plan that would have brought him to Seton Hall University in 1942.

Arminio attended boot camp in Newport, Rhode Island. He described the experience as an overall positive one, except for some feelings of loneliness. His greatest challenge of boot camp, however, was overcoming his fear of water and learning how to swim. This fear stemmed from the experience of his father, who died by drowning when Arminio was ten. After finishing boot camp as a 2nd Class Hospital Apprentice, he attended two schools in Portsmouth, Virginia for further training as a Pharmacist’s Mate, and then attended another school in Sampson, New York, for six months to receive additional naval training. After completing his schooling, Arminio boarded his assigned ship, the USS Custer, an “attack transport” designed to launch small boats with soldiers or marines aboard them in an invasion. Once aboard the Custer, which sailed out of Norfolk, Virginia, he received practical training in the ship’s Sickbay and Operating room, and learned how to handle individual cases.

The USS Custer and the Naval and Marine personnel aboard shaped Arminio into the person he would become after leaving the service. After a series of training missions in Virginia, the ship’s first stop on the way across the Pacific was San Francisco, where he experienced some free time in the city. The ship’s next stop, in January 1944, was Pearl Harbor. While there, Arminio saw evidence of the attack a few years prior, including debris and sunken ships.

Following Pearl Harbor, Arminio’s ship began “island hopping” across the Pacific. Its first stop was at the battle of Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands. During an attack by Kamikazes, he fell overboard! Though Arminio was rescued and safely returned to the ship, he recalled facing his mortality in that moment, thoughts that were strengthened after he helped the wounded following the attack.

After Kwajalein, the USS Custer continued to serve in the campaign through the Marshall Islands, and Arminio continued to help the wounded after attacks. He recalled that some incoming attacks led by Kamikazes were detected by radar, which warned the naval crews. After the Marshall Islands, the ship stopped at the Philippines, where Arminio was able to get Shore leave, which he used to explore villages and interact with local civilians. He recalled one visit to a local village where he purchased a Japanese sword as a souvenir. 

While onboard the Custer, Arminio enrolled at Cornell University’s correspondence school. While balancing his duties on the ship and completing coursework, he also communicated with his friends and family back home through letters. Arminio recalled writing to everyone he knew, just to get a response back and have mail to open. One of his pen pals was a girl who he had met in preschool. She would become his wife after his return home.

Following his final battle, Arminio returned to San Francisco while awaiting news about the end of the war. After the atomic bombs dropped on Japan, he was discharged, though he thought about staying in the military. Arminio returned home where he was welcomed by his family, and reacquainted with the woman he wrote to. They married in 1948.