Interview, James LoDolce, USN

James LoDolce (b. 1948) was born in Rochester, NY. After graduating from Gates High School, he went to work at General Motors before entering into service with the United States Navy on January 2, 1968. LoDolce completed his basic training at Great Lakes, Illinois, and specialized in catapult and flight deck crew. He served on Mediterranean cruises aboard the USS Saratoga and USS Kennedy; he also spent time in Cuba. LoDolce reached the rank of Airman E-3 and was honorably discharged from the Navy in December 1973. After his service, he returned to Rochester and enrolled in an apprenticeship with the plumbers union. He retired from General Motors after working there as a pipefitter and plumber for 34 years.

In this interview, LoDolce explains that he joined the Navy in order to avoid being drafted into the Army or Marine Corps. He reports that he enjoyed being on a ship in the middle of the ocean and discusses the dangers of his job as a “green shirt” aboard the USS Kennedy, where he was in charge of helping to land planes. LoDolce relates a story about a “need-to-know” mission that he was sent on in which he boarded a plane on the USS Saratoga and flew to San Diego and then Alaska before finding out that he was delivering munitions to a lieutenant stationed in Da Nang, Vietnam. LoDolce shares that he lost many friends in the Vietnam War and explains that most of his friends are veterans because he finds that they have similar interests and the same work ethic as he does.