James Wesley Johnson was born in Norfolk, Virginia on July 11, 1921. The 'Wesley' part of his name was in honor of a Dr. Wesley, an obstetrician, who worked with a mid-wife relative of the Johnsons. After the family moved to Manhattan, young Wes' mother assigned him the task of buying a quart of milk each morning. The challenge was that the cream was on the top upon purchase. Wes had to walk two blocks and up the stairs to the apartment without disturbing the layer of cream that his mother wanted on top for her coffee. In January 1939 Mr. Johnson graduated from high school in Manhattan and entered the night school of City College as a pre-med student. He worked days as an orderly in local hospitals. On Oct. 21, 1941, J. Wesley Johnson received his draft notice and went to Fort Dix in NJ for two weeks of initial processing. He was required to repeat one exam at Fort Dix as the officers were surprised that his score was so high. Wes scored just as high on the repetition. Because he requested the medical service, Mr. Johnson was sent to Camp Meade, Va., for basic training. Following basic training, he went to an air base in Sumpter, SC., which had a medical lab at the hospital. Wes and a former undertaker were chosen to teach basics of organic chemistry and how to operate a lab. When Wes understood that those he was teaching were going to be able to advance to officer level, he transferred to a position as typist for the black first sergeant over the black soldiers. His primary responsibilities were in sending out all the orders for the motor pool vehicles. However, the position allowed him to read all incoming and outgoing orders. He was able to understand possible paths to advancement. Wes put in a request for Officer Candidate School ('OCS') in the medical corps. Wes was at first accepted but then denied as the OCS school was in Miami, Florida (where blacks and whites couldn't mix). Wes graduated OCS in October as a Second Lieutenant and was posted to Camp Atterbury near Indianapolis, Indiana. At the end of training, Wes and his unit went to Fort Huachuca, Arizona, for training as a division. The leaders made clear that the division was training for direct combat with the enemy. Johnson was promoted to First Lieutenant in Arizona. After two years of training, the Infantry Regiment was sent overseas. Wes boarded his ship (part of a large convoy) in the Norfolk, Va., area. The ship convoy took two weeks to get to Livorno, Italy (called by the British name of Leghorn). During much of the ocean voyage, the soldiers were prepared to abandon ship. They wore their boots over their shoulders to make swimming easier in case of jumping into the sea. Upon arrival at Livorno, the troops ate their last meal before combat. The starving Italians begged for the leftover garbage. Wes moved out with his unit to take up the positions fighting their way up the coast while Nazi artillery fired down on them from the heights. The German 88 mm artillery pieces were greatly feared for their accuracy. In April 1945 Wes heard that Mussolini's body was hanging upside down near Milan. He got a jeep, a driver and two riflemen to go take a look. As it was so dangerous they left quickly after viewing. Wes lost two men under him. One was killed when a jeep overturned. The other had captured some Germans and was bringing them in at gun point. The American stepped on a booby trap. The Germans continued and helped recover the American body. At the end of the war, Wes was promoted to Captain. Wes found civilian work in accounting for a manufacturer of trim for ladies hats while studying business at night. An opportunity for more compensation later came up with a union position as a coordinator. Wes was highly skilled in dealing with people. All his life he made friends with everyone. Wes was able to smooth over those petty disputes that humans seem to always create. Wes is greatly missed!