WW2 veteran shares stories of bravery on Memorial Day

More than 80 years have passed, yet World War II veteran and Bulverde resident Don Bishop still gets teary-eyed thinking about his return.

“I was going to surprise them,” Bishop said. “My stepmother opened the door and said, 'Is that you, Don?' I said, 'Yes, that’s me.'”

Bishop was just a teenager when the Marine was sent to fight in the South Pacific in 1942. The thought of living to see the next day, let alone 98 years, was a miracle.

“I was one of three in my company that didn’t get shot,” Bishop said. “Seventy-eight (soldiers) were wounded and the rest were killed.”

Bishop served in Company K-3-1, braving some of the war’s deadliest battles, including the Overland Trail at Guadalcanal.