I have always had a strong interest in world war two growing up and never had the chance to sit down and speak with someone who fought in the war.

My great uncle died somewhere near Saarlautern, Germany with the 95th division. I met Mr. Banning at a nursing home around a month ago and have became close with him. I try to take care of him when I can, as his family is not able to visit him much. His house ended up burning in the early 1950’s. I have been putting his story together and had several people assist in retrieving lost records of his service as well as medals and military uniforms. Mr. Lawson has also been a great help. I wish to give special thanks to Matt Shirley for donating this Ike jacket to Loranza. I am going to get the proper rank and designated unit identification for him so it will match the one he would have wore during his service in the pacific.

Loranza Leon Banning served with the United States Army, 98th division, 389th Infantry in K Company. He was one of the 200 soldiers in the 98th who left Hawaii for the Philippines during World War Two and served from 1943 until the war was completely over. He enlisted because he knew there would be a time when he would have to go to war anyways. There was a younger man in line waiting to get enlisted in front of him. He said the poor boy had always been sheltered under his mother and never left home and was crying his eyes out. Mr. Banning asked the man in charge of the enlistment how many more people were being enlisted on this day and he said we need one more person. Mr. Banning asked if he took the boys place could he stay here and the man replied it will save him some time but eventually he will have to go to war anyways. Mr. Banning took the boys place and tried to buy him some time back home.

He was initially at a base in Hawaii and then went to the Lingayen Gulf in the Philippines and also ended up going to Leyte. At times he was located around areas in Japan like Osaka. The base they were staying at in Osaka was formerly a Japanese Cavalry base that they had captured from the Imperial Army. He was also around Tokyo, Japan after the war over. He was in Saipan when the atomic bomb was dropped at Hiroshima and also visited Kyoto Japan during his service with the 98th.
He told me that he didn’t really have a specific job that anyone gave him and worked with a lot of heavy weapons like a .50 caliber machine gun when he was stationed on the ships. There was a lot of recon and infantry work as well but most of the time when he was working with the infantry, he carried an M1 Garand rifle.

Loranza’s uncle on his father’s side was a cook in California and was never sent overseas. But his uncle Carl Banning was in Northern Africa fighting against Rommel’s Africa Corps. He did a lot of carpentry work for some of the generals in Africa and built furniture and bedding. His family did not talk about it very much at all.

Mr. Banning said he was happy to be on the boats and not fighting his way up those mountains but he said that he was always weary and nervous of the Japanese Zero’s that was crashing their aircraft into the boat. He said the constant waves, was also something that he didn’t care for too much. He mentioned that his biggest fear on the boat was the mines that the Japanese placed in the water and the Japanese submarines. His greatest fear was the constant worry of enemy submarines or hitting mines while he was on the ships. He said there was one time on the boat when his stomach went up to his throat. He said just off the ship not far away we saw something black sticking up out of the water. At closer look he said “oh my god, its a submarine.” He said seconds later it raised up in the water and everyone noticed it was just a whale. He said that was one of the times he was most nervous during the war. He said he thought they were done for at that point.

The wartime service made him value his life much more and it made him really happy to be alive. He said when he arrived home he was always a nervous wreck. Still a young boy but he would shake so much from nerves it took two hands to hold a cup of coffee. He said noises still scare him to death.
When he returned home he said there was lots of cheering. He said that a certain thing about some British civilians who were protesting wanting to make a new law that flamethrowers should be banned from war. Mr. Banning approached the people and asked about what they were trying to do and they said that the brutality of the flamethrower is too much for war and that anyone who uses one to kill another were going to hell. Mr. Banning then told them that he had carried one while in the pacific, he said once they realized their mistake he said they started creeping back like scared crawfish.
His readjustment back home was hard on him, as he was dealing with a lot of family problems. His family did not understand him anymore due to the change that he went through during his service in the war.

He is currently living at a nursing home in Southeast Missouri. His vision is bad, so he is not able to read or write very well on his own. So if anyone would like to send a letter or card wishing him well, they may send it to my attention; Tad Jones, P.O. Box 509, Kennett, MO 63857.
I will personally deliver them to brighten his spirits!
~ Tad Jones

We offer special thanks to Tad Jones for telling Loranza’s story. It is a great privilege and honor to collect these stories from our Veterans. These stories are their stories.
~ Jenny Lasala

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