Lester Kent, 88, Died in 2012-- Part 1: Survived USS Borie Sinking in Arctic

From the October 2, 2012, Press Democrat "Les Kent" by Cathy Bussewitz.

Lester Kent, 88, from Sebastopol who was one of the 129 who survived (27 died) the sinking of the USS Borie which was sunk in October 1943 in Arctic waters after a fight with a U-boat, died September 23, 2012.

He was born in Texas but grew up in Colorado.  Mr. Kent joined the Navy after Pearl Harbor and served on the USS Thrush, USS J. Fred Talbot and finally the USS Borie, which was sunk October 31, 1943, just south of the Arctic Circle.

"Our searchlights were on the sub, which was good for our gun crews, but also gave the sub something to shoot at."  The ship's bow got hung up on the U-boat and, "We had to use handguns, flare pistols and just about everything imaginable to fling at the Germans, even a nice coffee mug from Brazil and cans of condensed milk."

The Borie broke free but had been badly damaged and began flooding.

More to Come.  --GreGen