Page 11 - Florida Sentinel 12-8-17

Local
Remembering Pearl Harbor: Family Of Military Men Have Served The Country
Missing Teenager And Infant Son Located
A Tampa teenager and her infant son have been located and returned home. The family of Taniya Dozier, 16, reported her and her infant son, Caleb Padilla, missing on Tuesday.
Both were located the following day, police said.
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
One of the Military men served in Pearl Harbor, which was bombed on December 7, 1941.
It was on December 7, 1941 that 353 Japanese bombers attacked the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, destroying 19 ships, 188 aircraft and killing over 2,000 Ameri- cans. It was this act that drove the United States into World War II.
Looking back over those years, Dr. Walter Smith recalls the service his father, brothers and son gave to the military.
The family of Ruben and Eva Reynolds has been a Military family for many years.
It all began in 1940 when Ruben moved to Tampa, Florida from Blakely, Geor- gia and met Eva Smith, whom he married shortly thereafter. They were par- ents of four children and re- mained together as husband and wife for 60 years.
It was shortly after they married that Ruben had to prepare for Military Service, which they had not planned for in advance. However, the two oldest of the boys, Ruben and Ralph, were teenagers and they were able to have a joyful teenage life together during the first year of Dad's military absence from home.
Then, Ruben, Jr., the oldest of the boys decided he was going into the Navy. He did so and ended up at Pearl Harbor. It was here that he assisted in shooting down a number of Japanese Fighter Planes, which destroyed sev- eral US Ships and murdered hundreds of American Sol- diers. He, too, was wounded and received Purple Hearts and Commendation Medals for his actions at Pearl Har- bor.
Ralph, the next oldest brother, was a Military Re- cruit who served as a 82nd Airborne Ranger and spent more than 20 years in the Military with major opera- tions in Korea, Vietnam and other War Zones as were re- quired. He attained the rank of Command Sgt. Major and
RUBEN REYNOLDS ...U. S. Army
RUBEN REYNOLDS, JR. ...U. S. Navy
SGT. MAJ. RALPH SMITH ...U. S. Army 82nd Airborne
received many Medals be- cause of his outstanding leadership throughout his Military career. He retired to Fort Bragg, N. C. area, where he spent the rest of his re- tirement years with his wife and two children.
Walter, who is known today as Dr. Walter Smith, former President of FAMU, served three years in the Military and utilized his ex- perience and resources to chart his future in educa- tion. Since his Military years, he has led five institu- tions of higher education in America and internationally.
Finally, John L. Smith, the youngest of the Smith men, became a Commis- sioned Officer and served 30 years as 82nd Airborne Ranger. He led many Air- borne and Infantry Battal- ions through successful efforts, including Operation Iraqi Freedoms. He is the re- cipient of the Florida Bar Medal of Honor for his out-
WALTER L. SMITH ...U. S. Army
COLONEL JOHN L. SMITH, ...U. S. Army, 82nd Airborne
standing work with high school young men who were identified as potential fail- ures, but became College Success Stories.
The retired Colonel is now helping to develop Se- curity Systems in other countries in the World.
TANIYA DOZIER CALEB PADILLA
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2017 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 11-A