With five USS Arizona crew members remaining, it’s ‘twilight’ for Pearl Harbor survivors

I am trying to piece together my Grandpa's time during WWII for a family reunion next summer (and my own personal interest).

James Lewis Corier's Separation Papers indicate he separated from CO C 643rd Engrs BN.  From this website I've learned 643rd was created from the 39th 2nd Battalion.  (I hired a researcher and after a month he came back with that information, and it was on the front page of this website.)  I have found some information about the 1st Battalion, but not a lot about the 2nd Battalion.  I understand Battalions have several lower level units,  so I would love to find out what his specific company, or platoon, or whatever actually did during the war.

His separate papers indicated he arrived on April 27, 1943.

Grandpa told me he had landed in Casablanca was part of the force that pushed back Rommel from Kasserine Pass (but that doesn't jive with his arrival date).  He talked about landing at Salerno and Anzio.  I think he might have been involved with the invasion of Sicily.  I have stories and I'm curious where they fit in the grand scheme of things.

I've look all over the web and this site comes up quite frequently.  I've looked through a lot of posts on this site, but I can't tell what he specifically worked on.  Any information would be appreciated.  Thank you.

The US Army Corps of Engineers gracelessly shared the history of the 1051st Engineer Port Construction & Repair Group with me. Its a very through and interesting document that includes a roster of the men. I have 3 PDF's that can be emailed. Please send your request to kseafield@bellsouth.net and I'll be happy to send it out to you.

The monkey's fur is worn away. It's nearly a century old. A well-loved toy, it is barely 4 inches tall. It was packed away for long voyages, on an escape from Nazi Germany, to Sweden and America. And now, it's the key to a discovery that transformed my family.

The monkey belonged to my father, Gert Berliner, who as a boy in Berlin in the 1930s rode his bicycle around the city. Clipped to the handlebars was the toy monkey.

"I liked him," recalls my dad, who is now 94. "He was like a good luck piece."

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A Toy Monkey that Escaped and...