WWII Navy veteran David Dumas remembers service

By SUE SUCHYTA

Times-Herald Newspapers

DEARBORN – World War II Navy veteran David Dumas, 98, who served in the Pacific at the war’s end, entered the service in 1945 at age 17 after graduating high school.

He served for 18 months, sailing on the USS Abbot, DD-629, a Fletcher-class destroyer, working in the quartermaster corps on the bridge of his ship, as a movie operator below decks, and as an apprentice electrician.

Dumas said they went out to sea and patrolled the coast looking for enemy submarines or other possible vessels near the state of Washington.

“I was just on the very end of the war,” he said. “Enough to be in World War II.”

Born on White Street near Dix Road in Lincoln Park, Dumas attended Horger School for first through eighth grade, and Lincoln Park High School for 9th through 12th grade.

After his time in the military, he worked for the New York Central Railroad, and for the Detroit Toledo and Ironton Railroad, which was owned by Ford Motor Co. He said he started as a brakeman and worked his way up to trainmaster, overseeing train operations, and retired with a buyout in 1986 when he was 59 years old.

“I had one of the best jobs in the world,” Dumas said. “It was a great job, a lot of nice people and still hear from some of them.”

Dumas and his late wife, Lillian, had three sons and a daughter, and he has six grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.

He enjoys socializing, and is a member of the American Legion and is a former zone commander, and is a member of the Moose, Elks, Eagles, Veterans of Foreign Wars, AMVETS (and is a 40 + 8 state commander), was a past Dearborn area Veteran of the Year, and is a member of the Catholic War Veterans.

Dumas said he enjoys himself as much as he can, and he liked traveling throughout his lifetime.

“I’ve had a good life,” he said with a smile. “I did a lot of things that I wanted to do, and had ups and downs. It ended up pretty good.”