Theodore Freeman of Rantoul

Freeman was a steward, serving officers in the mess hall on the USS Missouri. But when the enemy struck, he had to man his position on a gun mount and defend the ship. He was on board the USS Missouri when a Japanese kamikaze pilot crashed his plane into the ship very near to where Freeman was standing. He talked with WILL-TV producer Denise La Grassa about the challenges he faced as an African-American onboard ship and about the conflict between his life as Pentecostal pastor before Pearl Harbor and his life as a sailor pledged to defend the country.