My father, Robert Simpson, passed away on September 27, 1996 at the age of 71. He was a Plank Owner of the Caperton and served from 1943-46 as a Radioman. He was truly a member of the robert simpson greatest generation who had to be prodded to speak of his experiences during the war. My father and I would sit down to watch a war movie and I would begin asking him questions and soon the story I was hearing was far better than any movie I could watch. He was so very proud of his time on the Caperton and proud to refer to himself as an ‘Old Salt’. He joined the Navy at 17 and a half with the grudging consent of his father after threatening to run away and join the Royal Canadian Navy.
On June 15, 1944 he was wounded by shrapnel during the Marianas Turkey Shoot. He left the Navy in 1946 and returned home to Stamford, CT where he met and married my mother, Dolores, in 1952. They raised three children Anne Louise, Laura Jean and myself, Robert John. My father loved taking care of the lawn at our house in Bethel, CT and was a lifelong New York Giants football fan. He is survived by his wife, children and six grandchildren.
Rob Simpson