Arlington National Cemetery. Services for my Grandfather, LTC Charles Wood Audet. June 17, 1916 - May 6, 2008.
Heroes Among Us... A Remarkable Life
By Jaimi Julian Thompson
In loving memory of Charles Wood Audet
Some might say that just living to the age of 91 is remarkable, and indeed, for a World War II prisoner of war survivor it is.
Others will marvel to hear of the Army Mine Planter Service Warrant Officer who found himself in charge of the evacuation of 10,000 persons from Mariveles and Bataan to Corregidor...while the Japanese were seizing prisoners on a daily basis...Charles Audet was helping them evade the torture and cruelty of the Bataan Death March.
Still others will shake their heads at ingenuity of this band of brothers who had the foresight to sink the Phillipine treasury before the Japanese invasion so that the treasure of the commonwealth would not fall into the hands of the enemy.
Even more remarkable was that upon Wainwrights' surrender, he survived the prison camp "Cabanatuan", the deplorable conditions made famous by "Ghost Soldiers" and "The Great Raid," only to be shipped in the hull of a rusty old freighter to a work camp in Japan before McArthurs famous return to the Phillipines. 24,000 prisoners were taken, and only 5,000 returned.
In exchange for the work detail of cleaning the mass bathing facility (20' x 20' x 4 1/2' wood and tin tub),he would receive not one but two bowls of mush per day. Despite weighing only
135 pounds-- he gave his extra bowl to the pilots of Pappy Boyington's Black Sheep Squadron-- whom he felt needed it more than he did. Until the day Pappy Boyington died, he would always love to hear from "chowbucket Charlie."
As part of a special grouping of 50 prisoners, he was flown back to the United States upon liberation. At a reception celebrating the end of the war, he paid his respects to a fallen Cabanatuan prisoners'- Maj Harry Julian-widow. After a whirlwind romance, the couple was married ten days later on New Years Eve- and the military paid for their honeymoon!
After the war- Charles Audet continued to serve ... in Italy, Austria and the US; and after his military service continued in his role of teacher and mentor - helping and inspiring those he met along the way.
I remember, even when I was a young adult, my Grandfather still walked around the neighborhood for hours...stopping to talk to everyone he met in the stores and markets along his route. His passion for people was only rivaled by his passion for boats.
Perhaps most remarkable to me was that later, as we faded from his recognition, he would always recognize his "love at first sight" ...his true love of 63 years- and only days ago when Anabel asked him if he needed anything, his response was simply "only you..."
So I guess you could say everything I need to know I learned from my
Grandfather-
1) Seize the day and live everyday as if it were your last
2) In the face of adversity, when it seems the most hopeless, it is up to each of us to act boldly and do the right thing. Our enemies can only win if we do nothing.
3) Believe in a better tomorrow- hope is what keeps us going through the most impossible times
4) Know what you want and go for it with abandon
5) Find your joy and nurture it- it is different for each of us
6) You can travel the world- but there is no place like home
7) We can learn something from everyone we meet- if we stop long enough to listen
8) We are not put on this earth to see through one another- but to see one another through
9) Know that every day we are teaching through our actions, not our words;
and most importantly
10) In the end, as in the beginning, it is only love that matters
Charles Wood Audet... Grandfather... we love and salute you.
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