U.S. Navy 1943–1946

 

When Richard Brenneman graduated from Natick High School in 1943, he volunteered to serve in the Navy. After basic and gunnery mate’s school, he decided to go into submarine service because “I was 18 and everything was an adventure.” Brenneman served mostly in the Pacific, where he went on patrols on board the Scabbardfish. He recounts being attacked by depth charges, and how he was in charge of a Japanese sailor for three weeks. In conclusion, he said that his service meant a lot not only to him, but to the country. “We were all in this together.”

Richard Brenneman’s 1943 yearbook entry

 

Richard Brenneman on the Natick High football team

 

USS Scabbardfish, about to dive

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