Bob Dole's Constant Pen in Hand a Reminder of World War II Wound-- Part 1

From the Feb. 18, 2021, Topeka (Kansas) Capital-Journal by Rafael Garcia.

For those who know former  U.S. Senator Bob Dole closely, know  not to shake his right hand.

For those not so aware, Dole constantly keeps a pen in that hand whenever he's out in public.  That pen serves two purposes.  It is a gesture to dissuade people from shaking that hand and it is a therapeutic remedy to an injury that changed Dole's life forever.  An injury that occurred in battle during World War II.

On Thursday, Bob Dole, 97,  announced that he is battling advanced lung cancer and will begin treatment Monday.

Dole has a history of battling wounds and health issues dating back to his military service during World War II.

A native of Kansas, Bob Dole was briefly a student athlete  on the University of Kansas'  football, basketball and track teams when in December 1941 he learned that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor.  A year later, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve Corps and left for active duty in June 1943.

And, One of the Greatest of the Greatest.  --GreGen

Duke University During World War II-- Part 2

In 1943, Duke added the Navy's V-12 program, an accelerated training regimen to speed qualified military personnel and high school students into active service as officers. Many were needed to lead the explanded numbers of military members and those killed and wounded.

In the 1941-1942 basketball season, Coach Eddie Cameron's last Blue Devil squad went 22-2, his best record in his 14-year tenure. On March 7, 1942, they repeated as Southern Conference champs.

Football coach Wade resigned in March 1942 and returned to military service (he had been a captain in World War I) and volunteered for the field artillery. (A later Duke legend, Mike Krzyzewski, also was in the field artillery and rose to the rank of captain.)

Cameron, the football backfield coach, took Wade's place as athletic director and "acting head football coach." Cameron's position as head basketball coach was taken over by Gerry Gerald.

In football, the 1942 Duke team lost 21 players from the Rose Bowl unit, but Cameron opened the offense and had four straight winning seasons.

Go Field Artillery. --GreGen