World War II veteran Gerald Pederson was there when the Japanese surrendered on the USS Missouri (BB-63), ending the war in the Pacific.
Video by Air Force Tech Sgt. Neal Uranga
Transcript
[Orchestral music]
(Franklin D. Roosevelt) The American people and their righteous might will win through to absolute victory.
(Gerald Pederson) Well, I went aboard the Missouri, and I was part of a small group that was on the Missouri. All of us had some task. My particular task was to be part of a machine gun that was used against anti-aircraft work. And I was part of the honor guard that stood where all the Japanese representatives aboard came. And prior to that, the various leaders of the different countries that were to sign the dec., they all came up. It meant that the war was now over and the killing had stopped.