It’s been a few years since my hero passed away. He was my father, Floyd Proffitt, a battlewagon and submariner sailor from WWII who lived to the ripe old age of 93. We shall never forget the sacrifices that were made by him and his fellow shipmates who have passed, for they are now on Eternal Patrol.
Before WWII started, my father served aboard the USS West Virginia (BB-248). But during the war, he served aboard the USS Thresher (SS200) and the USS Macabi (SS375). By the end of the war, Floyd was a seasoned war veteran, First Class Torpedoman, who made 10 patrols with the Thresher and, at the end of the war, one patrol with the Macabi.
As the years passed, a congressionally chartered veterans organization was created called the U.S. Submarine Veterans of World War II. It was established to “perpetuate the memory of those shipmates who gave their lives in submarine warfare during World War II.” Today that group, together with the U.S. Submarine Veterans Inc., represents all submariners of all eras.
