Pearl Harbor Survivors Visit Las Positas College

Phillip Kirouac weaves his way through an eager crowd waiting to greet Pearl Harbor survivors. The 13-year-old finds his way to the front of the line, turns around and politely asks the veterans to sign the back of his T-shirt.

"It was an amazing experience to hear them speak," he said. "I just felt like I needed to get their autographs."

Phillip, a San Jose resident, and his family were part of an appreciative crowd filling the theater in the new Barbara Fracisco Mertes Center for the Arts building at . The campus on Wednesday hosted a free history symposium featuring Lonnie D. Cook, Louis A. Conter, and Clarendon Hetrick. More at Las Positas College are scheduled for today.

The trio of veterans discussed their experiences of being aboard the USS Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor. Only 18 survivors remain today, officials said.

"Prior to 1991, none of us said a word. Not even to our kids," said Conter, who served 28 years in the U.S. Navy.

Conter, 87, of Grass Valley, said he was very happy to see a large crowd interested in hearing their stories.

Sharing their experiences has helped veterans overcome post-traumatic stress, Conter said.

"We had to start letting it out and talking to people," he said.

The symposium included a question-and-answer session.

One audience member asked the veterans to discuss their initial reactions to the Pearl Harbor attack.

"I hit my battle station and did what I was trained to do," Hetrick said. "It was automatic."

Hetrick, 89, is a resident of Bullhead City, Ariz. He served more than 10 years in the U.S. Navy and 10 years in the .

Cook, 89, said he was taking a shower when the ship began to rumble.

"All hell broke loose and I went to my battle station," he said.

Cook, a resident of Tulsa, Okla., served eight years in the U.S. Navy.

Marie Abbott, a Livermore resident who attended the event, said hearing the veterans' stories was a touching experience.

"It affects you in a strange way," she said.

Ben Cerasi, 23, a resident of Modesto, was part of about a dozen people who waited for the veterans after the program to thank them for their contributions.

"It has always been a dream of mine to meet a veteran from Pearl Harbor," he said. "It's a dream come true."