By Jeff Werner, BucksLocalNews.com
Korean War-era veteran Norman Schnitzer, a national committee member for the Jewish War Veterans of the United States and a former state commander, has fought many battles on behalf of the veteran, but none on the field of combat.
He was among the lucky ones who served during the “Forgotten War,” but was never called to duty in the combat zone.
“But I believe I helped in my own way,” said the Bensalem Township resident, who served stateside for 10 years in the U.S. Air Force Dental Service from 1951 to 1961.
Schnitzer grew up in South Philadelphia during World War II and was the son of a World War I veteran. His father, Max, served as a combat engineer, responsible for building bridges and trenches in France.
“He was also very lucky,” said Schnitzer. “He caught the flu and his CO told him to go see the doctor. But he said, ‘We’re working on this bridge.’ The CO says to him, ‘That’s an order. I want you to go to the doctor.’ While at the doctor, the bridge was hit and his crew was killed.”
After the war, his father worked at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, laying down the teak decks on some of the country’s most known battleships, including the New Jersey, Wisconsin and North Carolina.
“Whenever I visit the New Jersey, I kneel down and touch the deck,” said Schnitzer.
Schnitzer, who was 13 when World War II broke out, graduated from South Philadelphia High School. Following graduation, he took a job as a dental technician. He met his future wife, Harriet, in 1948, and the two were married in 1950.
With the Korean conflict raging between the Republic of Korea, supported by the United Nations, and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, supported by China, Schnitzer made the decision to enlist in the U.S. Air Force in 1951.
“It was either that or get drafted,” he said. “I was able to go wherever I wanted to be and I was able to continue my career in the Air Force.”
Schnitzer took full advantage of the opportunity, attending several schools and receiving additional dental training. He served with the Air Force in Texas, Alaska, Ohio and at the MaGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey before returning to civilian life.
“Our job was to make sure our guys were in top shape,” said Schnitzer, who was assigned to the dental laboratory. “I made dentures and partials. I even made some simple orthodontic appliances.”
In one case, while serving in Alaska, he was responsible for rebuilding the dentures of a patient who was in a motor vehicle accident and had fractured his upper and lower jaws.
“They handed me a handful of pieces,” he said. “It took me five hours to put it together.” For his work, he received a promotion.
The year and a half he spent in Alaska were the most memorable. While stationed at an Air Force hospital near the capital city of Anchorage, an early morning fire broke out at the facility.
“We set our plan in motion and we evacuated over 250 patients. We didn’t lose one patient. We lost a nurse from smoke inhalation,” said Schnitzer. “We all got a letter of commendation from the Surgeon General of the Air Force,” he said.
Afterwards, the men had the job of cleaning up the damage, which was confined to the officer’s club and the nurse’s quarters. “I was swinging a mop. I was a sergeant, but I was swinging a mop just like everyone else. Someone walked by and I splashed water all over his shoes. I looked up and I saw three stars. It was the Surgeon General of the Air Force. And he said to me, ‘Just carry on sergeant.’ I apologized, but he said, ‘Don’t worry about it.’”
A volcano also erupted while he was stationed there. “We were covered with six inches of dust and it was hard to get rid of,” he said.
Schnitzer took full advantage of his time in the Air Force, using it to perfect his dental technician skills.
“It wasn’t like World War II where dentistry was sloppy,” he said. “We did some pretty fine work and I was proud of that.”
Following his discharge, Schnitzer worked as a dental technician in the Philadelphia area, making removable full and partial dentures for dentists. Health conditions sidelined his work two years ago and he made the decision to retire.
Today, when he’s not spending time with his 10 grandchildren and a grandchild-in-law, he’s working to make life better for the Jewish War Veterans, both locally and across the nation.
For all the combat he missed during the Korean War, he’s made up for it by waging a battle of a different type in the halls of political power.
Schnitzer has become a strong advocate and lobbyist for the local veteran, serving numerous times as commander of the Fegelson-Young Post 697 of the Jewish War Veterans, as state commander of the JWV and currently as a national executive committee member, which he said is kind of like being in Congress. He also serves on the board of directors and is a life member of the National Museum of American Jewish Military History in Washington, D.C.
“Part of our function as Jewish War Veterans, or any veterans organization, is to help veterans,” said Schnitzer, when asked why he is so passionate about his work on behalf of veterans.
“It’s a constant battle,” said Schnitzer, of his efforts on behalf of the veteran. “When it comes time for the V.A. budget, we have to beg. We don’t have mandated funds. In other words, we’re part of the budget that the V.A. gets every year. And we have to beg.”
The biggest need right now, he said, is the physical and mental care and placement of the men and women returning from combat.
His other passion is the National Museum of American Jewish Military History, which he said is unlike other museums of its kind.
“We don’t exhibit weapons. We tell stories about people,” he said. “Did you know there were 15 Jewish veterans who were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor? Two are still alive,” he said. “That’s what we tell about in the museum.”
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