My name is Shannon Ray Cooper. I am an indie/military author. I just finished writing and self-publishing my first book, "Pearl Harbor: Remembering How We Served and Survived December 7th 1941."
I am a Navy veteran and member of American Legion Post 226, Coweta, Okla. In December 2021 during our Legion meeting, we received training on the Pearl Harbor attack. I was really inspired to write my book on the subject. I really wanted to share the survivors’ and their families' stories. I wanted to make sure they were not forgotten.
I joined the Navy in 1979 while still attending high school at Tokay High School in Lodi, Calif. I signed up under the Delayed Entry Program (DEP), which allows students to sign up and be sworn in prior to graduation.
I went to boot camp at the Naval Recruit Training Center in San Diego in October 1980. I was asked to be in a special company called the Crack Rifle Drill Team. This required additional training and practicing; we woke up an hour before everyone else to practice drilling.
After boot camp, I was off to my “A” school to learn my job (rating) in the Navy. My school was located at the Balboa Navy Hospital Training Facility in San Diego.
My first duty station was USS Barbour County LST-1195. It was a tank leading ship that performed amphibious operations with the Marine Corps, Land, Sea and Air. The one thing about being on a ship is that everyone has to do temporary duty in the mess hall and galley (kitchen) for a period of 90 days. Most sailors dreaded the mess duty. I, on the other hand, absolutely loved it. When the time came to take the E-4 exam, I studied and passed the Mess Management Specialists (Cook), Third Class Petty Officer Advancement Exam. I cross-rated from HM to MS. I learned my new job by getting "on the job" training. I learned to cook from the best cooks in the fleet.
On May 10, 1982, we sailed north toward Bremerton, Wash., to participate in Armed Forces Day celebrations. We moored alongside the battleship USS Missouri BB-63 and saw it was being mothballed. This was my first experience with Missouri. They were giving tours of the decks during daylight hours. Since I was a cook who worked 16-hour shifts, I never got an official tour. But after hours, I took a self-guided tour of the massive, teak wood decks.
The first time I set foot there, it was love at first sight. I remember saying, “What a beautiful ship you are. I would have loved to have the opportunity to serve on you.”