Robert Van Druff
Last week I had the privilege of spending some time with Mr. and Mrs. Robert Van Druff at their home in Brookeville, MD. Recently, while speaking to someone about our 52 Acts of Kindness campaign, it was brought to my attention that Mr. Van Druff who is a member of my community is one of the last remaining Pearl Harbor survivors. What an honor it was to meet with the Van Druff's and listen to them recount their experiences during WWII. After surviving the attack at Pearl Harbor, Mr. Van Druff was part of the U.S. military operation that fought the Japanese across the Pacific, "One island at a time." Mr. Van Druff would ultimately serve 22 years in the Navy, also seeing extensive combat in the Korean War. This article contains Mr. Van Druff's first hand account of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
There is a beautiful painting hanging in the living room of the Van Druff's home of Pearl Harbor the morning of December 7, 1941, just before the attack. It was painted by a friend of Mr. Van Druff and clearly is very meaningful to them. It was a highlight of my experience to have Mr. Van Druff share the story behind the painting with me and narrate the scene to me, including identifying the ship that he was on during the attack. As a person with a strong interest in American history, what an experience this was to have an opportunity to speak with someone who lived through one of the most significant days in our history. In Tom Brokaw's book, The Greatest Generation, he poignantly describes how the WWII generation literally saved the world and freedom as we know it, yet they are a very humble and unassuming group. The Van Druff's are no different. They are obviously very proud of their accomplishments but also very humble. I cannot strongly encourage people enough to seek out members of this generation and spend some time with them before it is too late. We can all stand to learn from their example of service and commitment as well as their sense of community. In this technology age we live in we have lost a lot of those core values the Greatest Generation lived by and we should seize the opportunity to re-instill them in ourselves and our children while we have the chance.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Van Druff are 93 years old and have been married for over 70 years. It seemed appropriate to honor them last week (Valentines Day) to also celebrate their long lasting relationship. I brought Mrs. Van Druff a bouquet of flowers and Mr. Van Druff a challenge coin from my agency as a small token of appreciation for his service. I also prepared them a home cooked meal for dinner as it is difficult for them to cook. My small act of kindness was overshadowed by the appreciation I had for being able to spend time with such gracious and interesting people. I hope to take Mrs. Van Druff up on her offer to stop by any time to visit and continue to get to know them better.
If you would like to send the Van Druff's a card expressing appreciation and support I know it would mean a lot to them. You may send it to:
Mark Janney
Special Investigations Division
100 Edison Park Dr.
Gaithersburg, MD 20878
Mr. Van Druff placing a wreath at a monument honoring Marylanders killed during the Pearl Harbor attack.
Pearl Harbor during the attack
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