Vet's In the City

Meeting Sascha Jean

It was while watching the Ken Burns documentary, The War, that I was introduced to Sascha Jean Weinzheimer. Sascha Jean was born and raised in the Philippines where she lived with her family on her grandfather’s sugar plantation. There, she lived a charmed life of cotillions and proper education, handmaids and nanny’s with the back drop of the Philippine landscape to explore.

In 1941, WW II had escalated with the Japanese attacks at Pearl Harbor and the Philippines. It was not long before the Philippines fell and chaos replaced Sascha’s peaceful existence. She was 9 years-old.
As a result, the Japanese gathered up and interned the civilian population where they would ultimately remain until the end of the war. During her captivity, Sascha journalized her experience at Santo Tomas internment camp and it was through these tales that touched my heart.

She wrote with such detail and eloquence and yet never lost her innocence of childhood. I decided to research this part of history and stumbled across a memorial Web site dedicated to the survivors of Santo Tomas. http://cnac.org/emilscott/santotomas01.htm.
As a courtesy, I signed the sites guest book and was honored with an email from Sascha days later. The rest, as they say is history and we have been sharing a wonderful friendship ever since.

I have always been fascinated with this period of American history and the people who experienced the events of WW II. As a military veteran myself, I have an even greater appreciation for their sacrifices and endeavors and am honored to be included in their lives.

What started as a curious search on the internet has lead to a unique and rewarding friendship with one of America’s greatest generation members. We share weekly phone calls and exchange emails where she regales me with fabulous accounts of her life and daily encounters.

Sascha is a wonderful woman and I am honored to call here friend.




C.Anthony