May 26, 2008 4:50 pm US/Eastern
WWII Vet Recounts Remarkable Story Of Survival
WORCESTER (WBZ) ―
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Ted Raczynski recalls his remarkable story of survival and the remarkable sacrifices made by his fellow World War II soldiers.
WBZ
The clarity of the morning sky brought back clear visions of that day 66 years ago for Ted Raczyski as he sat in his Red Sox cap on the patio of Tatnuck Park at Worcester.
"You know it was a nice day," remarked Ted, who is a fit 87 years old.
Monday was a nice day, too. The sounds of peace infiltrated the burial ground of wars past, blossoms above graves in the north end of Worcester, where Ted Raczynski grew up, replaced explosions over troops bound for the North African invasion.
"They're all screaming and flapping and so forth. It was unbelievable," recalled Ted.
A german u-boat had hit Ted's troop transport ship, the USS Hugh Scott, with two torpedoes. Fifty-nine hands were lost. The sinking ship threatened to suck others under water.
"And we were trying to survive. So I just swam away. I floated, swam, floated. For some reason, I think I hit a current. I went further out than I realized." Another ship rescued Ted. "I knew I was only a speck in the water. They saw me and took me to a nearby ship."
That was the U.S.S. Florence Nightingale and Ted was re-assigned to that ship for the balance of the war.
That blessing led to four children, six grandchildren and one great-grandchild for Ted who went on to a successful career as a toolmaker and engineer.
But this day, Ted still remembers the shipmates he lost in 1942. "You know, you have flashbacks. You don't forget. You don't forget."
After Ted came home, many of his childhood neighbors never did. A plaque honoring gold star families stands in their neighborhood at the corner of North and Grove Streets.
While many bad things happened in the so-called "good war," and while Ted Raczynski still thinks about some of those bad things, he spent a good day with his family thinking about the good life he helped preserve for them and us.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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