Anton John Pavlik

He was born in Eagle Lake, Texas on April 7, 1926 to Mary and Anton Pavlik. He grew up in Houston and attended Milby High School. At the age of 18, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and proudly served his country in the Asia-Pacific War during World War II. When the Korean War broke out, he enlisted in the Air Force Reserves. Following his years in the service, he spent much of his life working for the National Supply Division of Armco Steel. He married Louise Wilson on April 3, 1948, and they were happily married for 65 years until her passing in 2013.

Johnny loved life and especially loved his family and family gatherings. He was very active in the church and community, spending five years coaching his son’s little league teams. He loved music, dancing, playing cards/dominos, hunting/fishing, ranching and visiting Las Vegas.

He is preceded in death by his parents, wife Louise, and sons Ronnie and John Kenneth. He is survived by his sister, Dorothy Smith; son David Pavlik and his wife Star, daughter Carol Carter and her husband Maxie; and daughter Janet Mazzella; 12 grandchildren, 18 great grandchildren and one great, great grandchild.

Johnny was a faithful Catholic. He attended Immaculate Conception Catholic School as a youth and later served as an altar boy for the church.

Johnny spent most of his life working hard to help others and serve his country. It started early in life, leaving his high school basketball team to work at the local grocery store and post office to help his parents at the end of the depression. He was well respected, a loving son/husband/parent, and a true role model for what is now called “The Greatest Generation”.

The Pavlik family wants to express our sincere thanks to his friends and caregivers for their love and support for Johnny over the years. Johnny spent the later years of his life at Park Manor Nursing Home. There he was cared for by a generous staff who showed real acts of kindness throughout his stay. A special thanks to Roxanne and Gina for making his latter years as comfortable as possible.

We’ll miss him.

WWII as Remembered Through the Eyes of a 90 Year Old Veteran

For almost 70 years Anton John Pavlik, a veteran of the Pacific War during World War II refused to talk about the war. Like most veterans of the "Greatest Generation", Pavlik has not wanted to discuss the details of this horrific period of his life. In his mind, discussing the details of the war would only bring back bad memories of what most WWII veterans would describe as "Pure Hell".

Finally, one January afternoon, Pavlik, just short of his 90th birthday, agreed to share what he remembered about this traumatic time in his life.

Pavlik was born in Eagle Lake, Texas in 1926. His family moved to Houston during the Great Depression. He attended Charles H. Milby High School and worked evenings at the local grocery store and post office to help support his family, still struggling to recover from the Great Depression. After the United States was pulled into WWII by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Pavlik, like many of his classmates, found himself being drawn into a war directly out of high school at the young age of 18.

In July of 1944, Pavlik went to Boot Camp at Fort Hood, Texas. He traveled from Ft. Hood to Ft. Ord in California, then on to Seattle. It was there, on January 22, 1945, he boarded a Naval ship headed for Hawaii as part of the 306th Company "I" of the 77th Infantry Division of the U.S. Army. The miserable trip across the ocean was made even worse by the rough seas accompanied by the continuous smell of diesel. Almost everyone on board was sea sick for most of the journey. To pass time, Pavlik engaged in occasional games of craps (dice game) where he managed to win $800. Knowing his parents dream to one day own a home, he asked a priest to mail the money home to his parents. The priest said he would under one condition... Pavlik had to agree not to gamble again. It was a promise he kept for almost 24 hours.

From Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, his ship was deployed to Guam on February 11, 1945. They were positioned outside of Guam for a short time, and then redeployed to Leyte Island. Enemy snipers were causing havoc on the island and several members of Pavlik's Company were sent ashore and temporarily reassigned to a squadron on the island to surface, capture or kill enemy snipers. This was Pavlik's first encounter with the Japanese face-to-face and he praised Sergeant Poindexter to whom his squad was assigned for teaching them how to maneuver and flush out snipers while only experiencing minimal casualties to the squadron. He remembered the Philippine soldiers supporting them by climbing up the large trees like cats flushing out the enemy. Pavlik's said the experience of hunting down snipers under Poindexter's direction proved to be extremely valuable in the upcoming months. One of the things he explicitly remembered was Poindexter teaching them how the Japanese would hollow out trees and then hide inside the trees attempting to shoot the soldiers in the back as they passed.

From the Leyte Island, the 77th was redeployed to Le Shima. Being transported by naval vessels, they were sitting targets for Japanese suicide planes. On April 3, 1945 one of the ships was sunk by a kamikaze pilot killing all aboard, including 234 U.S. officers who were conducting a meeting below deck. Pavlik recalls that it was one of the most horrible sites imaginable to watch this ship explode and then sink knowing there was nothing they could do but watch. While the ship Pavlik was aboard was attacked on many occasions, the Navy crew along with the American fighter pilots successfully shot down incoming enemy planes, avoiding a similar disaster to what he just witnessed.

After continuing to dodge enemy planes for a few weeks the 77th landed on Le Shima. Their objective was to take over a Japanese airbase and clear the island of the enemy allowing the CB's to expand the air field so that larger aircraft could come in. While the enemy troops they encountered were not equipped with the heavy artillery U.S. soldiers were facing in Europe, the caves and trees were infested with enemy snipers who were constantly utilizing jungle warfare to kill American soldiers.

Pavlik remembered the Navajo Indians ("Windtalkers") that served beside them in combat making communications between squadrons safer because the Japanese could not break the code of the native Indian language. He recalls that while the Navajo provided vital communications support they were also tough fighters with a take no prisoner attitude.

Pavlik remembers that after losing radio contact with Company "K", Pavlik's Company "I" began to search the area for the missing men. After making contact with the missing soldiers, Pavlik's squadron fell under attack from enemy snipers hidden in a cave despite the fact that this cave had supposedly just been cleared with hand-grenades by another squadron. 2nd Lieutenant Hall was hit in the stomach by sniper fire. Pavlik, handing his rifle to another soldier carried this wounded officer three miles to the hospital that had been set up on the island. Pavlik said the only time he stopped was when once again they came under fire from another sniper. Pavlik vividly remembered that four shots were fired but all four hit he sand just below their feet. While Pavlik was unable to visit Hall in the hospital, it appeared that Pavlik had gotten 2nd lieutenant Hall to the hospital in time.

After rejoining his squadron Pavlik soon faced a situation which would give nightmares to any soldier. Pavlik's squadron was engaged in combat as they continued to make their way across Le Shima. Pavlik remembers umping into a fox hole where he came face to face with three Japanese soldiers. The Japanese pointed their rifles at Pavlik who raised his rifle to fire but his rifle jammed. A soldier standing just outside the fox hole saw what was happening and shot the three Japanese. Pavlik could not understand why the Japanese had not killed him when they had the chance. Pavlik then realized that the Japanese despite the fact that they had pointed their rifles directly at him were out of ammunition.

Once it appeared that the 77th had accomplished their mission on Le Shima, the CB's began to start construction on the airport. The 77th soon got new orders to redeploy to Okinawa to relieve the 5th and 96th divisions who had sustained severe casualties.

Despite the fact that the U.S. ships and allied planes had just bombarded the beaches of Okinawa before they arrived, Pavlik remembered that enemy fire was intense as they waded from the boats to shore. At one point the man next to Pavlik went down. When Pavlik lifted his head out of the water he discovered the man had been fatally hit by enemy fire but also realized that he was a man that he'd been playing cards with the previous evening.

Shortly after arriving on the beaches of Okinawa, Company "I" was charged with driving the enemy from the bunkers and caves where the Japanese were inflicting heavy casualties on the 77th Division. After days of intense fighting, Pavlik under heavy fire from the enemy, fell on the rough terrain breaking his collar bone. Pavlik was taken to the medic tent but the doctor told him with the number of severe casualties there was little he could do for him suggesting that he get his shoulder looked at when he returned to the states. Even though Pavlik had 103 degree fever he returned to the front line the next morning. While the pain lasted a few days, Pavlik said the return to battle took his mind off of the broken collar bone. While the broken bone is still clearly visible today Pavlik said hw as lucky that this was the most significant injury he incurred in the war.

The fighting on Okinawa was proving to be different from Le Shima with the enemy well equipped with heavy artillery, tanks and machine guns. The fighting was intense and the casualties were many. When Pavlik's Staff Sergeant was killed the then PFC Pavlik was named his replacement given the fact that Pavlik had now become the most senior PFC in the Company. Days later the Tech Sergeant was also killed in action and unfortunate circumstances saw Pavlik receiving a second promotion in less than a week. While Pavlik did not consider himself ready to lead the Company, circumstances forced him to take responsibility for the other members of his squadron.

Pavlik said the fighting seemed non-stop and there wasn't much time to be scared as they continued to fight for days without sleep. The division's casualties were staggering as they continued to advance against a Japanese army that was determined to hold their position. A radio message came through that the 77th had just brought over 150 men from the U.S. to replenish the division. When the additional troops did not show up, word soon spread that all 150 men had been killed attempting to cross the island.

When additional troops did arrive the combined effort began to push forward often utilizing hand-to-hand combat to fight the enemy. To Pavlik's surprise a troop of Japanese soldiers had been held up just 50 yards from where Pavlik's men had been positioned the previous night.

Pavlik remembers that at one point the enemy artillery fire became so intense that the company was soon scattered with everyone searching for cover. Pavlik, along with another soldier, got separated from the rest of the men and were not reunited with Company "I" until after dark.

There was no question that the Japanese were determined to fight until death to hold their position and not let Okinawa fall to the ally soldiers. Ultimately, the 77th Division was able to complete their objective and secure the ridge which Pavlik described as strategic in their effort to defeat the enemy and take control of Okinawa. When it became apparent that the army had secured Okinawa, he distinctly remembers several Japanese soldiers committing suicide with their swords rather than surrender to the Americans. The statistics for Okinawa clearly illustrated the intensity of the fighting on this island as over a five week period some 33,462 Japanese were killed with the American army, navy and marine casualties totaling 16,964.

Once it was clear that the objective of the 77th on Okinawa had been achieved the Division began training for deployment to Japan. A few days into training a typhoon was forecasted for Okinawa so the division was transported to a small Chinese Island until they got the all clear to return and resume training.

Pavlik said there was no doubt that many more Americans would soon die as they invaded the Japanese Islands. However, they knew that what they were fighting was for all the right reasons. It was inconceivable to them that their families back home would ever be under the rule of Japanese dictators and the very thought of this made the troops even more determined to defeat this enemy. Pavlik said the desire to win the war and protect the homeland was much more of a force than the fear of being killed. Pavlik said that prayer was his primary means of dealing with the war and his statement was clearly demonstrated by a heavily worn rosary he brought home which clearly reflected the number of "Our Fathers" and "Hail Marys" Anton recited.

While training for an invasion of Japan, Pavlik heard over the radio that the U.S. had dropped the atomic bomb on Japan. While the troops felt this was a significant blow to Japan, they were certain that the Japanese would never surrender. Days later word came over the radio that Japan had surrendered and the war was over. Pavlik remembered that as part of the celebration every soldier was given a case of beer and for a brief moment the troops celebrated. Pavlik said while it was great to celebrate the end of the war and the thought of returning home, it was also a sobering time as they honored all the men who had given the ultimate sacrifice for their country. Pavlik said it was quite emotional as every man in the division stood and saluted the fallen soldiers.

Pavlik is convinced that the dropping of the atomic bomb not only saved his life but also the lives of the remaining 77th division. Pavlik thanked Harry Truman for his bold and brave decision to try and end the war.

Pavlik did not have enough points to be sent home so he was reassigned to the 1st Calvary and was deployed to Japan to serve as an occupational force to secure the islands. Pavlik said he was soon serving in Japan as an MP. His division spent time securing the island, collecting weapons and monitoring behavior.

Pavlik remembered that the Japanese people were extremely polite to the American soldiers and despite the fact that they ad just spent the past few years in a horrible war with each other, the Japanese could not have treated them more fairly and no longer appeared to be a threat. It became clear to Pavlik that the Japanese people had fallen victim to a terrible dictator who had put them in an undesirable war. Even the soldiers he had worked so hard to defeat were clearly human beings with families simply doing what they were told with a code of honor so great that they were willing to die for it, not unlike the American soldiers.

While in Japan, Pavlik remembered meeting General McArthur whom he said was loved by all the troops. Pavlik described him as a kind individual as well as a great leader and terrific soldier. Pavlik said he distinctly remembered that while McArthur offered his hand to emperor of Japan, the emperor turned his head refusing the shake McArthur's hand. This act reassured Pavlik that despite the heavy casualties of the war, the soldiers had kept this horrible emperor from doing any additional harm to the United States.

Pavlik said that one thing that brought a smile to his face was the memory that while on Le Shima they attacked and captured a bank for fear that the bank was occupied by the enemy. Once secured, Pavlik said that he and other soldiers were instructed to burn all the money. He said they found a box of cigars and amused themselves by lighting the cigars with Japanese money. He said they managed to burn the equivalent of millions of dollars and thought nothing about it until they reached Japan to discover that they were being paid in Japanese currency.

While waiting to depart Japan, Pavlik met Bill Billeck (Army Cavalry) who was also from the Houston area. Pavlik and Billeck became good friends and have remained good friends after the war. Pavlik discovered that Billeck was born on April 11, 1926, four days after Pavlik. He felt the "7" and "11" birthdates were a lucky omen and spent most of his free time gambling during the 7 day boat ride back to the United States. Today, while Pavlik's gambling experiences are pretty much limited to bingo, he always gets a bingo card with the numbers 7 and 11 to honor their friendship. Pavlik said that the best thing to come out of the war was becoming friends with Billeck.

Pavlik returned to Seattle and then was transported by train to Ft. Sam Houston in San Antonio where he was honorably discharged. He returned home to Houston where he returned to the post office until a friend got him a job with National Supply Company in Houston, Texas.

When the Korean War broke out Pavlik joined the Air Force Reserves stationed at Ellington Air Force Base.

When asked if he'd had a girlfriend during the war, Pavlik replied he did, but like many other soldiers received a "dear John" letter during the war. Pavlik smiled and said it was a good thing for it let him meet the girl of his dreams in 1948 with whom he spent 65 glorious years before her death in 2013.

Pavlik simply closed the conversation by saying again that "war was hell". He now appreciated why his grandfather had transported Anton Sr. and his uncles from Praque to the United States to avoid them being caught up in a war that was breaking out in Europe in the early 1900s. When Pavlik's oldest son remembers that his dad wanted to know if the army would allow him to take his sons place so that his son did not have to experience the horrors that he had lived through in WWII.

With the release of the new movie Hacksaw Ridge, Pavlik was asked if he had heard of Hacksaw Ridge. He replied that he had but replied that Okinawa was full of ridges and there was so many battles fought on Okinawa he could not remember whether he was on the ridge during the battles depicted in the movie.

He was also asked if he had heard of Desmond Doss. He replied that he could not remember the name but he was aware of the Medic in the 77th Division on Okinawa that was not willing to carry a gun. He remembers hearing other soldiers in the camp talking about the fact that he refused to even touch a rifle. When asked about how he felt about Desmond refusing to carry a gun Pavlik said he had mixed reactions. While Pavlik felt that fighting the enemy was necessary to defend the country he loved, he was sympathetic with Desmond's belief in the commandment "thou shall not kill". Pavlik, as a devoted Catholic, said he often prays that God will forgive him for what he had to do to protect his family, his fellow soldiers and his country.