Happy birthday, Lincoln! Behind him, Madison VFP members Larry, Phil, Steve, Daryl, John, and Tom. Photo credit, Sandy Franzen.
A copy of Lincoln’s book can be found here at the following link or Amazon or where Veterans for Peace Madison might be tabling.
Picture credits to Larry, Phil and Tom
Members of Madison Veterans for Peace joined a large crowd today to celebrate the 100th birthday of Lincoln Grahlfs, our oldest member currently. Lincoln served in the US Navy during and after World War II.
After the war, he was at the infamous US nuclear weapons tests on Bikini and Eniwetok Atolls in the Pacific, receiving much radiation. Many of his buddies died too young, but he has survived and fought for better health care for veterans suffering from nuclear exposure. During the Summer of 2022, US President Joe Biden called him to Washington DC, to witness the signing of a bill mandating that care.
– Larry
It was a wonderful party for Lincoln
Who celebrated his 100th birthday
With so many friends and family.
Lincoln was recently honored with
A personal meeting with President
Biden at the White House for his work
With the veterans who survived the
Atomic testing programs held after
WWll.
Members of Madison’s Clarence
Kailin chapter 25 Veterans For Peace
Were on hand to honor their most
Distinguished member.
– Tom Glassel
Lincoln during the war. We were all so young during our wars. Some are forever young.
National World War II Museum oral historian Hannah Dailey talks about “atomic veterans” and interviews four veterans including Lincoln Grahlfs
Joan and Lincoln Grahlfs
“F. Lincoln Grahlfs, a World War II Navy veteran, is a sociologist who has studied the effects of radiation exposure on United States military veterans. He has served as president of the National Association of Radiation Survivors.”
Veterans of US Atomic Age Deserve Compensation (militarytimes.com)
Lincoln and President Joe Biden Summer 2022
The President signed a 2-year extension of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), which provides partial restitution to Downwinders, atomic veterans, and uranium workers exposed to radiation. – Lilly Adams
Lincoln’s ship putting out fires on one of the expendable ships that was anchored near ground zero of an atomic bomb test.
“The United States conducted nearly 200 atmospheric nuclear weapons development tests between 1945 and 1962 spreading radiation across several Western states and the South Pacific. All the while, the Atomic Energy Commission insisted to surrounding residents: “There is no danger.”
‘Downwinders’ ignored despite radiation fallout from US nuke tests – Responsible Statecraft
“Floating on a U.S. Navy tugboat in the Pacific Ocean nearly a year after the end of World War II, Lincoln Grahlfs and his shipmates could hear a countdown over a radio, signaling their mission would soon begin.
The sailors were told to cover their eyes with their hands before the countdown hit zero. Four hours later and wearing no protective gear, Grahlfs and his ship traveled 11 miles through Bikini Atoll to ground zero of where the United Stated military had tested a nuclear weapon.
The crew was tasked with putting out fires on empty ships used as targets and towing those that hadn’t sunk to shallower waters for examination. More than 75 years after cleaning up the aftermath of two atomic tests in the central Pacific, the Madison resident has used his personal experience to advocate for ridding the world of nuclear weapons and on behalf of fellow veterans exposed to dangerous radiation…”
Wisconsin State Journal
